Are you ready for some football?

Rachelle Pecovsky and Ivy Tillman accept James B. Posey Award
(photo : www.iwflsports.com)


Are You Ready for Some Football?

Many people can not even imagine what Sunday and Monday nights in the fall would be like without those heart wrenching football games. Loyal fans follow their favorite teams throughout the year in hopes that they could witness there team winning a championship, bowl game, or the Super bowl. Players train year around in dedication to preparing for a successful season. Not only does the game get taken to physical heights for fans and players, but it gets emotional too. Let’s face it, no one likes to lose, but someone has to. These factors along with many others are what have kept football alive for years and it continues to grow as a top entertainment source all over the world.
Starting out basic many years ago the process of the game has grown to be so much more. Now when people think of football, they also think of the massive crowds, the die hard fans, the captivating announcers, the spirit of the cheerleaders, and the incredible sound of the bands. Football has so much going on now, several people may think nothing more could be added to spice up the game. Well at least not until now. Many people are unaware of the new spectacular attribute to the game; women. Women now have there own professional football league known as the IWFL or the Independent Women’s Football League. It is a nonprofit Texas corporation. The league was founded in 2000 by a group of driven women who sought interest in forming their own football league. Team owners and players started the league with player safety, community service, honesty, and integrity as the main focus.
The league started out with only two teams, the Minnesota Vixens and the Lake Michigan Minx. They traveled across the country competing against each other in what they referred to as the No Limits tour. The tour caught attention drawing more fans and potential players. IWFL has tremendously grown consisting of over 1000 players divided among 30 teams. Surprising to many people, the rules of this league actually allow body contact and full tackling. They actually play with many similar rules that NFL players go by.
One concern of this phenomenon is how the public will respond as knowledge of it continues to rapidly spread. A few football players were interviewed so that they could voice their opinion. Senior full back De’Angelo Bryant of Wake Forest University says he never heard of IWFL when asked about it. He stated, “I don’t object to it though. It’s a good idea but at the same time I would raise a question to would it put a woman’s health in danger considering their bodies are built differently.” Bryant appears to be a little bit supportive of the idea but he feels that it may die out because women in sports are tied to sex appeal mostly and many fans would feel that football attire is too masculine for women.
Running Back Kevin Smith of the CSRA Cobras semi pro team stated that he actually has heard about the league and that it was a professional league where all females play with full body contact. He stated that he also had a friend from Florida that used to play in the league. “I don’t see anything wrong with it.” He argued. “It’s almost like telling a man he shouldn’t cheer, which people had to eventually get over.” When questioned about the future of IWFL Smith said, “As long as there are motivated women that want to play it should be pretty successful but I’m not sure if the fan base would be very successful. It depends on the effect it has on people.”
Brian Elam is a former USC running back and now plays for the Columbia Stingers arena football team. He too has never heard of the league. “If there are women that feel like they want to play football then they should be able to do whatever they want,” Elam states. “There may be a chance it will die out because many Americans are bias so that would affect the fan population.” Although Brian Elam has never heard of the league until now, he said that the first time he ever heard of a female playing football was for a middle school team in his home town North Augusta, SC where she made history being the first female on the football team. Several students at USC were inquired about the league but majority of them have not heard of it. They mostly seemed to not have any strong feelings against it but several of them had personal objections.
So what does the future hold for the Independent Women’s Football League? As of now the players, coaches, and others involved remain dedicated to their vision and it is still going strong. The purpose of their vision is “to create and promote a full tackle women's football league focused on creating a positive, safe and fun environment for the women who play football and a fun experience for the families coming out to watch them. The IWFL is a Women's Tackle Football league allowing all women the opportunity to play tackle football. The IWFL also allows women and men alike the opportunity to coach, manage and even own a sports team in order to further this opportunity for women athletes.” And the drive does not stop there for these ladies; in addition, IWFL is teaming up with the NFL for the first ever clinic for girls. Players are looking forward to it considering that it is very important for the future of the sport.

NaTasha Martin J325