It's called FLAG football for a reason, son!!

The little corner of the Cornfield where my son and I live is a town called Du Quoin, Illinois. It's mostly "famous" for the Du Quoin State Fair (which is totally the shyznitt!! ummmm...fair food!) and for high school football. The Du Quoin Indians are known in Southern Illinois for always fielding a powerhouse team. Twenty-five straight years in post-season playoffs ain't no joke!! This includes more than one trip to the "Big Show" that is the State Championship game. They lost a heartbreaker in the final last year.... I was soooooo bummed about that one...

But I digress....

Part of the fielding consistently good teams is that they start 'em young here. Which brings me (finally) to my topic... my son is playing flag football. But it's really "flag" football in name only. I mean, they all wear the little belts with the tear away flags. And they do grab the flags....eventually. However, those lil' beasts were straight up tackling each other! I stood in utter amazement as I watched these 6 and 7 year olds T-boning, bodyslamming and clotheslining one another. These children, who will whine and cry at a moment's notice when they are with mommy, were knocking the dog poop outta each other! Then there they were, poppin' up to their feet for more like they had springs in their butts!!

The teams are all coached by players from the high school team. I guess to build responsibility and leadership skills... Anyhoo...the parents lining the field were conversing about the positions these munchkins were destined for in 7, 8, 9 years when it is finally their turn to be high school football heroes... And please believe me when I say, these people meant that ish!! It wasn't just idle chit chat about some vague future team... these folks gots plans for the kiddos! Training regiments and the whole banana. They practically have the 2017 team roster finalized!

All the while, these kids are just knockin' the crap outta each other!! On the bright side, I've been assured by several people that Eli is a beast on defense and has a bright future as a defensive back coming down the road!!