Lunchtime Football League Energizes Upper School Community

After finishing lunch in MacDonald Hall, tenth, eleventh, and twelfth-grade students head to Brumbaugh Field twice per week to kit up for one of four teams and play a game of two-hand touch football. The first team to score three touchdowns, or the team with the most points at the end of 10 minutes, wins the game.

 

The idea for the LFL came about unassumingly enough – Eli Goozh ‘23 and his friends decided to play football instead of basketball one day during some free time.

 

“We had the same competitive spirit as we did playing basketball,” Goozh said. “After that first day, as we were heading inside, we all realized it at the same time and said, ‘That was a lot of fun, so let’s make it something real.’”

 

After organizing a draft of interested students and playing a few games during the 2021-2022 school year, Goozh and his friends spent the fall and winter of this year hyping up the LFL for the spring 2023 season. Thanks to a strong social media presence, hallway fliers, and morning meeting announcements, the LFL quickly became integrated into the Upper School social calendar.

 

All Upper School students are welcome to be part of the LFL as players, referees, media team, or spectators. Students are proud of the teams they play for – Gaithersburg Gamblers, Travillah Trapstars, Frederick Bald Eagles, and Navy SEAL Team Six – and have even made custom T-shirts to promote the League.

 

“Honestly it means everything to me, creating the LFL,” said Marcel Gardner ’23. “Everybody is competitive, and everyone is having fun with it. It means a lot.”

 

“I’ve been a huge football fan my whole life. The fact that there are so many people here that are on that same level as me in terms of competitiveness, that makes it super fun,” Goozh said. “I always think to myself that other students are in the same boat as I was before we started this, that they want to have some competitive two-hand touch football, too. That’s why we try to be as inclusive as possible.”

 

Conor Roberton ‘23 said it’s meaningful to see classmates and faculty, including a jubilant Tracey Goodrich and an upbeat James Isaacs (“Let’s go St. Andrew’s!”), spectating from the stands.

 

“It’s awesome seeing everyone come out for the games. You look up on the hill and there’s a crowd as big as the ones for the soccer and lacrosse games,” he said. “It definitely brings everyone together.”

 

“Everybody is involved and we don’t leave anybody out. Anyone can watch, anyone can play. It’s something to look forward to,” said Mason Jones ’23. “It’s kind of like our recess, but we’re just a bunch of big kids who like to play football.”

 

The Gaithersburg Gamblers and the Travillah Trap Stars won their playoff games last week, advancing to the Super Bowl. The championship will be played at 3 p.m. May 9 on Brumbaugh Field.