Sydney Denekamp | Staff Intern
Legion of Boom, a Crooks-based flag football team, has been playing tournaments throughout the off season with their most recent being the Riggs Football Academy Tournament at the Sandford field house.
The team is coached by Adam Brown and is made up of 10 of the best Crooks flag football league players all nine to 11 years old.
Legion of Boom practices weekly from October until April. The team spends half their time working on fundamental skills and the other half going over plays for upcoming tournaments.
“We try to take the game of flag football… and give the kids the fundamental skills that are going to make them successful in later forms of football like tackle,” said Brown.
This is Brown’s third season coaching flag football and Legion of Boom has been his biggest team yet. It is also the first year the flag football players have received their own Crooks flag football jerseys.
In years past, jerseys had been sponsored by various companies, but never carried the Crooks flag football league title. This year jerseys display both Crooks flag football team emblem as well as the players’ names on the back.
“It’s kind of like a badge of honor… that the kids really like. If you have a shirt with your name on it – that’s cool. It makes them feel pretty proud. We want the kids to have something valuable to walk away with,” said Brown.
Legion of Boom has played five out of six scheduled tournaments so far and a total of 17 games. They have a record of nine wins to eight loses.
According to Brown, the increased level of competition is one of the most rewarding factors of playing tournaments during the off season.
“When they’re thrown into this level of competition, it’s kind of a reality check for them. I think it really helps them grow to be pushed… Even at a young age –third grade– they’re learning hard lessons,” said Brown.
In preparation for their final tournament in April, Brown plans to reduce the number of plays the team will use to simplify their offense. He wants the team to be really good at just a few plays.
“The help and support from Crooks flag football has been fantastic. They have really built a great program completely from scratch. In the few years they’ve been doing it, it has really turned into something special and I commend them on their volunteer efforts,” said Brown.