Sports & Athletics
Flag Football
- Category:
- Sports & Athletics
- Season:
- Fall (practice from early September)
Girls flag football is a GHSA-sanctioned sport, and Gwinnett helped build it. In 2018, the Atlanta Falcons and the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation backed girls flag football at GCPS high schools, and GHSA voted to sanction the sport starting in 2020. Girls flag football is also on the GCPS middle school sports list.
What Flag Football is
- A GHSA girls varsity sport, played in the fall.
- Non-tackle football: players pull a flag from the ball carrier's belt instead of tackling.
- A GCPS middle school sport for girls in grades 6–8.
- A path for athletes from soccer, basketball, track or softball who want a fall team.
What Flag Football is not
- Not tackle football. No helmets or pads.
- Not a boys sport in GHSA.
- Not rec flag. School games follow GHSA rules.
- Not limited to experienced football players.
Who runs it
The flag football coach at the school, under the athletic director. GHSA sets dates and the state championship. GCPS sets paperwork through Rank One. Middle school girls flag football runs in the county middle school league.
Who coaches at your child's school is a school question. Ask the front office or the athletic director. GCPS Insider does not keep a live coach list and cannot tell you who the coach is. Please do not email us to find a coach, tryout date, practice time, fee, or roster.
Season at a glance (2026–27)
| When | What happens |
|---|---|
| Sept. 7, 2026 | GHSA first practice. |
| Fall 2026 | Regular season and region play. |
| Dec. 8, 2026 | GHSA state championship at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta. |
By grade
- Middle: Girls flag football is a GCPS middle school sport for grades 6–8. Ask the school when tryouts happen.
- High: Varsity and sometimes JV. Many players are new to football.
Eligibility and paperwork (2026–27)
- Rank One first. GCPS uses Rank One for athletic paperwork. A student cannot condition, try out, practice or compete until the parent has signed the consent forms there and a current physical is uploaded. The student must be enrolled at that school. GCPS instructions
- Physical. GCPS uses a four-page physical form: the family fills in pages 1–2 (medical history), the doctor completes pages 3–4, and all four pages go into Rank One. GHSA By-Law 1.41 requires a physical every year by an MD, DO, nurse practitioner or physician assistant before any tryout or practice. A physical done on or after April 1, 2026 covers the full 2026–27 school year.
- Grades. Under GCPS rules, students entering 9th grade for the first time are eligible their first semester. After that, a student must have passed five of six classes the semester before and be on track to graduate. GHSA also counts credits: 5 units before 10th grade, 11 before 11th, and 17 before 12th. Eligibility is set on the first day of each semester.
- Attendance. GCPS says a student who is absent more than half the school day, or who serves in-school suspension, cannot practice or play that day.
- Eight semesters. GHSA allows eight consecutive semesters of high school eligibility, counted from the first time a student enters 9th grade.
- Transfers. GHSA By-Law 1.62 treats most students who change schools without a bona fide family move as ineligible for varsity for 365 days; they may still play sub-varsity. Talk to the athletic director at the new school before you move, not after.
- Theme and online programs. GCPS students at theme schools and online programs that do not field their own teams generally play for the school they would ordinarily attend. Ask the athletic director at that school how it works.
Rules are from the 2026–27 GHSA Constitution (ghsa.net) and GCPS athletics pages. If anything here conflicts with what the athletic director tells you, the athletic director wins.
Time and logistics
Practice most weekdays, weeknight games, and a season that runs from September into December. Ask whether practice overlaps with softball or volleyball.
Money
There is no single GCPS price for this sport, and we will not quote one. Ask what families cover: shoes or gear, practice wear, any booster or team fee, camps, travel and spirit packs. Ask what the school provides, and ask quietly about help if the cost is a barrier. Club and travel teams outside school are separate costs and separate commitments.
How Georgia scores it
GHSA runs region play and a state championship. A resume line should give varsity years, position and captain role, plus any state appearance.
Who it tends to fit
- Good fit: a girl who wants a fast team sport, including athletes new to football.
- Think twice: if the student already plays volleyball or softball in the fall.
How kids get on Flag Football
- Ask the athletic director who coaches flag football.
- Finish Rank One and the physical.
- Ask when tryouts are.
- Bring cleats.
Not every sport, level or team exists at every GCPS school, and rosters and offerings change year to year. Confirm at your child's school before you plan around it.
Questions to ask the coach
- When are tryouts?
- Are beginners welcome?
- What does a typical week look like?
- What gear do we buy?
- Can players also do another fall sport?
- How do you pick positions?
- Is there any cost?
- Who is the athletic trainer?
Schools we have seen list Flag Football
Still verifying. We have not published a school-by-school list for this sport and we will not invent one. Browse the schools directory and check a school's own athletics page, and tell us what your school offers — that link is for adding a school, not for asking who the coach is.
Who coaches at your child's school is a school question. Ask the front office or the athletic director. GCPS Insider does not keep a live coach list and cannot tell you who the coach is. Please do not email us to find a coach, tryout date, practice time, fee, or roster.
What to do this week
Ask the athletic director who coaches girls flag football and when tryouts are.
Related: Football · Volleyball · Softball · Cheer