FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                                     CONTACT:
NFL-153                  12/3/03                                                                      Lori Hamamoto, NFL, 212/450-2435
                                                                                                               hamamotol@nfl.com

NFL FLAG NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAMES TO AIR ON ESPN & ESPN2

Youth Football Teams From California and Florida Crowned National Champions

At Walt Disney’s Wide World Of Sports ® Complex

The Rocklin Dawgs, representing the 9-11 co-ed division of Oakland, California; the St. Pete PAL team of Miami representing the 12-14 year-old girls division and MoSteel, the 12-14-year old boys division of Miami were all named NFL FLAG football champions at the NFL FLAG National Tournament of Champions at DISNEY’S WIDE WORLD OF SPORTS ® Complex in Orlando, Florida.

For the third consecutive year, ESPN and ESPN2 will televise the NFL FLAG National Tournament of Champions: 

Saturday, December 20 at 4:00 p.m.       ESPN
Wednesday, December 24 at 6:30pm      ESPN2
Thursday, December 25 12:30 a.m.         ESPN2
Thursday, February 5, 2:30 p.m.             ESPN

Former NFL star quarterback BOOMER ESIASON, the official spokesperson for NFL FLAG, will host the telecasts.  Esiason also is an NFL FLAG coach for his children’s teams.

The competing teams, hailing from Atlanta, Baltimore, Miami, New York, Nevada and Oakland advanced to the National Championship tournament from a pool of approximately 100,000 kids who participated in NFL FLAG across the United States, 30 percent of whom are girls. All teams qualified for the NFL FLAG National Championships by virtue of their NFL FLAG regional tournament performances in October.

“We were pleased to host another successful NFL FLAG tournament,” said NFL Senior Director of Youth Football Cedric Jones. “All of the teams showed a lot of heart, character and determination.”

Parents or guardians may register their children to play in NFL FLAG leagues by calling 1-800-NFL-SNAP or by logging on to www.nflyouthfootball.com.

Developed by the NFL, NFL FLAG teaches values and life skills on and off the football field. The program emphasizes safety, fun, teamwork, self-esteem, discipline and goal-setting.  NFL FLAG is a non-contact version of traditional football and is offered for boys and girls ages 6-14.

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