NFL football coming to Shawano

If you’ve watched an NFL game, you’ve seen commercials for the NFL’s Play 60 campaign, an effort to get kids to be active for 60 minutes every day. A part of the national campaign will come to Shawano, thanks to partnership between the Shawano Parks and Recreation Department and the NFL FLAG Football program. A flag football program for youths will start in Shawano this fall. “We just figured that that’s something that we didn’t have here,” said Matt Hendricks, director of the Shawano Parks and Recreation Department. “One of our big things is the thought of getting kids moving and getting them active. With the diabetes stuff, childhood obesity being a big deal, we thought this was great.” The new league, which features a 5-on-5 format, will serve kids going into kindergarten through third grade. “It’s a good fit, it’s a good program, and we have a niche in our community,” Hendricks said. “Let’s try and fill it.” The program, held Saturdays at Eberlein Park in Shawano, will last six weeks. Cost per child is $35 and includes a replica NFL jersey and two flags. Registration is open until Aug. 29, with the first games to be played Sept. 20. Hendricks said he’d like to keep the the teams to fewer than 10 kids each. “We don’t want to have 20 kids on a team and half of them are standing and watching,” he said. Keeping those team numbers low will require plenty of coaches, which is the focus of the department’s early recruiting efforts. “We’re definitely trying to get the word out,” Hendricks said. “People can’t participate if they don’t know about it. Like many youth sports, we’re going to rely upon volunteer parents, especially in that first year or two.” An informational meeting for potential coaches will be held at 6 p.m. Sept. 11 at the Recreation Center, 220 E. Division St., Shawano. “We definitely need people to volunteer,” Hendricks said. “It’s not a lot, maybe one day a week. You don’t need any other coaching experience or anything like that.” Hendricks said the Parks and Recreation Department will provide all the necessary information and tools. “People love the NFL, they love their programs,” Hendricks said. “It was a good way to be a part of something that already has a lot of infrastructure created.”