SV Girls Flag Football - More Than Just a Game with Ms. Heather Lewis and Mr. Chris Eden

Seneca Valley is making history with every snap, pass and touchdown. In today’s episode, we’re talking about one of SV’s newer sports, girls flag football. From its student-driven origins to its rapid success, this program is making a big impact on and off the field. Listen as we discuss how the team was formed, the excitement of the first season, how to get involved and more! 

IN THIS EPISODE, WE WILL REVIEW

• An overview of Seneca Valley’s Girls Flag Football Team 
• Growth of the sport
• How SV's Girls Flag Football is impacting female athletes
• Coach Eden receives Good Neighbor Award from NexTier Bank
• How to learn more about Seneca Valley’s Girls Flag Football Team
  • https://athletics.svsd.net/girls-sports/flag-football/overview

SPECIAL GUESTS
Ms. Heather Lewis, Athletics & Activities Director and Mr. Chris Eden, Health and Physical Education teacher at Ryan Gloyer Middle School and head coach of the Seneca Valley Girls Flag Football Team.

Ms. Lewis, entering her 14th year as the District’s Athletic & Activities Director, has previous experience as the chief operating officer for USA Field Hockey, a U.S. Olympic & Paralympic National Governing Body. As part of this role, she hosted major events for the International Federation of Hockey, supported the women’s and men’s national teams in international competition, and assisted in the reorganization of the Association’s executive leadership structure. She also has previous experience as the head field hockey coach, head women’s lacrosse coach, associate athletic director and assistant athletic director for Bucknell University in Lewisburg, Pa. Additional experiences include time spent as an official for the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and president of the National Field Hockey Coaches Association.

A former athlete herself, Ms. Lewis was a regional All-American and All-ACC and captain of the field hockey team, and regional All-American and NCAA champion for women’s lacrosse, all while at the University of Maryland, College Park. Ms. Lewis has a bachelor’s of science in zoology and a master’s in kinesiology from the University of Maryland.

Mr. Eden is in his 10th year of education and 5th year at Seneca Valley, where he teaches Health and Physical Education at Ryan Gloyer Middle School. He is passionate about helping others, promoting wellness through movement, and fostering health literacy among his students. Additionally, Chris enjoys exploring the many benefits of integrating technology into the classroom. Outside of teaching, he is passionate about the outdoors, working out and coaching football.

Transcript

FULL TRANSCRIPT (with timecode)

00:00:02:27 - 00:00:10:14
Welcome to Voices, a national award-winning podcast brought to you by the Seneca Valley School District. 

00:00:11:05 - 00:00:35:18
Jeff Krakoff: This is Jeff Krakoff. Today we're talking about one of the newer sports and activities at Seneca Valley. It's girls' flag football, and we've got two guests. We've got Heather Lewis, director of athletics and activities, and Chris Eden, who is a middle school health and physical education teacher and also the head coach of the girls' flag football team. Thanks for joining us today. 

00:00:36:00 - 00:00:37:11
Chris Eden: So thanks for having me. 

00:00:39:00 - 00:01:06:20
Jeff Krakoff: So flag football, I think everybody knows what that is. May have played it in their younger years. But you know it was interesting. I saw there was a lot of promotion and talk during this year's Super Bowl about getting flag football into as many schools and school districts around the country as possible. So we have it at Seneca Valley. Um, can you just give us the overview? You know, when did it start? How did it start? 

00:01:08:15 - 00:01:50:02
Chris Eden: Yeah. So it started from a couple girls. Um, they had wanted to play flag football. Um, we obviously didn't offer it just yet. Uh, other schools, um, in the area had teams, and so they were like, well, why doesn't Seneca Valley have one? So they went to, um, you know, through the administrative steps, through, uh, meeting with Ms. Lewis, with, uh, you know, getting it approved through the school board. Uh, once it was approved, um, we started up right around this time last year. Uh, we started up with about 70 girls who, uh, initially signed up. Um, our first day, we had about 47. Um, and then throughout the season, we ended up playing with 43 girls. 

00:01:50:18 - 00:01:51:06
Jeff Krakoff: Okay. 

00:01:51:13 - 00:02:34:21
Heather Lewis: And I think if I can just add on there, um, what was really exciting about all of this is it was really student driven. And when students come to you and say, are we able to do this? You put some parameters in front of them, like there's a minimum expectation of participation numbers and interest level. And when we and Chris's point when we had the interest meeting last, I think January, it was when I walked in the auditorium, I was blown away by the number of young girls that were in that room. Um, so it it really caught me off guard in terms of how significant the interest was in this program, and then to see how Chris and the coaches sustained that interest through the season was it was really fun to watch. 

00:02:35:00 - 00:02:39:16
Jeff Krakoff: Okay. So last spring was your first season, how did that season go? 

00:02:39:21 - 00:03:59:05
Chris Eden: Well, um, it was when we initially started, it was just myself and another coach. Um, so again, logistically, you know, there was a lot of challenges with just getting, um, individuals to understand a game of football, the fundamentals. What was really awesome and inspiring was just how quickly they grasped our concepts and just the passion, the dedication, um, in committing themselves to being the best football player that possibly could be. It was. Honestly, it was just humbling and it was just awesome. Um, you know, our first game, uh, was again, for me, as someone who has played football my entire life, someone who's coached, you know, on Fridays and Saturdays. Um, our first game, I, I assume that everyone knew what the line of scrimmage was. And this was probably like, the biggest thing I took away was like, what we assume people know. And then there's what people actually know. And so when I started calling the plays, I noticed that we weren't lining up on the line of scrimmage and just people were just like looking at me. And I had realized in that moment I was like, oh, uh, I forgot to teach them about what the line of scrimmage was. And, um, again, we kind of got through it. The girls did great. They had lots of fun. Um, was really cool. Was the Pittsburgh Steelers were there was a showcase game. Um, so there's social media team. Was there some of the Pittsburgh Steelers was there as well. Hmm. 

00:03:59:20 - 00:04:00:14
Jeff Krakoff: That's awesome. 

00:04:00:16 - 00:04:08:29
Chris Eden: And it was it was just an incredible experience. And again, this program has taught me so much about myself, um, and really has made me a better person. 

00:04:09:09 - 00:04:15:04
Jeff Krakoff: So, Chris, what's your background? You mentioned you've coached boys football before. What's your coaching background? 

00:04:15:06 - 00:04:41:07
Chris Eden: Yeah. So I've coached multiple, um, you know, multiple sports. Um, I coach track and field. Uh, I've coached football, um, for the last five years, I coached here at Seneca Valley. Um, I was a varsity assistant. Um, in my my responsibilities, I was either a JV head coach or, um, again, a position coach on Friday night. Coach the corners, coach the wide receivers, um, linebackers. 

00:04:41:09 - 00:04:56:19
Jeff Krakoff: So, you know, I'm curious what what differences or maybe there aren't any. Do you see from coaching boys versus girls and what differences do you see in, you know, traditional helmet pads, football versus flag football. 

00:04:57:20 - 00:05:51:27
Chris Eden: Yeah, I mean, that's a great question. I think there's a lot of similarities in relation to the concepts. Um, you know, that we teach the girls and basically with flag football, I mean, the same plays that you see Friday night are the same plays that we run, um, we run it up, uh, up tempo, RPO offense. Um, defensively, we kind of run a similar scheme. Um, either you play a lot of zone or you play a lot of, uh, man coverage. Um, the only thing obviously the difference is obviously with, you know, traditional football, you have helmet and shoulder pads, wear flag football, obviously you have flags. But for us it's the same angles that you take. It's the it's the same, you know, fit drills um, that we do with, with the guys, we do with the girls, you know, and just getting to the right fit position so it makes it safe. Um, when we talk about like, the hawk tackle progressions, we kind of teach the same exact thing. 

00:05:52:20 - 00:07:00:21
Heather Lewis: Jeff, I will say I'm. I'm on Chris's distribution list when he sends information out to the team. Um, he is meticulous in his teaching of the concepts that he's talking about, because I even watch football now with a different perspective. Having had the privilege of seeing what he's teaching and he puts PowerPoint slides together, he breaks it down. Um, I'm not surprised by the trajectory of the competitiveness and understanding based on, um, what Chris is teaching and the level of detail that he's giving. Um, they really pretty complex offense. Um, and, and their, how they line up and they're how they stack receivers and, and the creativity of this. And so I think that's what really makes it fun for the young women is it's not boring like they are creative. And um I think they it's fun for them to be a part of this. And so my football knowledge is even enhancing when I get the weekly "okay, this is what we're doing this week" and I get the game plan. 

00:07:01:14 - 00:07:13:04
Jeff Krakoff: That's great. So. So where do you play? What's your home field? And, uh, you know, it's at the same size is a boys football field or is there a difference? 

00:07:13:06 - 00:08:12:12
Chris Eden: Yeah, actually, um, that's a great question. So in our football league, um, we have a North Division. There's a South Division, East and West division. Um, there's ten teams in our division. So basically with how flag football goes, it's basically played round robin. So you play two games. Uh, there's two fields. Our field size is 35 yards wide. Um, it's 50 yards long. So we don't play the traditional north and south. Um, we play sideline to sideline. Um, which again, there's, there's pros and cons to that. Um, as far as our home field, we last year, we were very fortunate that we got to have a home game, um, which was really cool for the girls. They I mean, that's they they wanted that opportunity. Um, but for us, we go to like a different host site every week. So we might go to North Hills, we go to North Allegheny, we go to, um, Shaler, you know, so within a week, it just it just rotates. 

00:08:12:20 - 00:08:34:19
Jeff Krakoff: Okay. So this might be a silly question, but. So you're only 30 something yards away from your opponent sideline. Do you have to take certain precautions when you're calling plays? And are people trying to almost like in every other level of football, try to get your plays and steal your signs? What happens there? 

00:08:35:08 - 00:10:04:27
Chris Eden: Yeah, absolutely. That's a great question. So, um, for us, we signal things, um, via hand signals. Um, and again, as, Ms. Lewis alluded to, we're very meticulous with that. Um, there's a lot of planning and preparation that goes into that. So for us, what you see on Friday nights or Saturdays at a college football game is the exact same thing that we do, because one of the challenges that I feel like we ran into last year was if you play a team, um, you know, a couple of times, eventually they're going to pick up on your hand signals. I mean, we're only 35 yards, you know, across, you know, you can look at another coach and you can read their mouth and kind of see, like, hey, like that person or, you know, that person's going to run an outside zone and this is what you can expect. So what we do, um, we hand signal things in and we also use a wrist coach. Um, and then we also use, uh, big signs. So like, you would see, like on a Friday or a Saturday, College game day. Uh, last year we used, um, frozen characters and Disney inspired princesses. So we would basically signal something in. So I'd be like, uh, I give the number five, and the five would be, you know, uh, Cinderella. And so we know that we're running a play called Cinderella, which is one of our trick plays. So I try to switch it up because I do think some people at times kind of picked up on our signs. So, um, you know, that's just part of the game. I mean, that's just football. That's what happens. So we just got to be creative and just come up with new and innovative and new and innovative ways to get the signals out. 

00:10:05:08 - 00:10:15:01
Jeff Krakoff: Okay. So last year was year one. You're prepping for season two. Is this a varsity sport? Is it a club activity? 

00:10:15:11 - 00:11:17:21
Heather Lewis: Yeah. Um, it it is a varsity sport and they are transitioning. You know, we're grateful that the Steelers have invested what they've invested in this program. And they have really helped. I think all the schools in western Pennsylvania get off the ground with uniforms, equipment, um, structure. So because of the interest that has skyrocketed in the state of Pennsylvania, it will turn into a PIAA sport starting in the spring of 2026. So we are kind of in this transition period where on our campus it is considered a girls varsity sport, grades 9-12. Um, and then starting and we will fall under the jurisdiction of this league that's been created over the past few years. Starting in 2026, we will fall under the jurisdiction of the PIAA. And every rule that applies to a, you know, a fall football league or student athlete applies to the spring girls flag football. So all right, it's been a wonderful explosion in the sport. 

00:11:17:29 - 00:11:35:22
Jeff Krakoff: So Chris, I know you mentioned there's a North and a South Division, right. So geographic uh, at some point when it becomes a WPIAL sport, do you think it falls under classifications like other varsity sports do, or do you just don't know where it's heading? 

00:11:35:24 - 00:11:51:04
Chris Eden: I think if we get some more teams, um, I think it will definitely go that to go that way, where if it goes six divisions, I don't think that will be a case. I think maybe like it'll go three classifications, um, until they get more, um, teams involved. 

00:11:51:12 - 00:11:51:27
Jeff Krakoff: Mhm. 

00:11:52:24 - 00:12:23:01
Heather Lewis: It might mirror the pathway that girls wrestling has taken in our state because they just became, uh, a sanctioned sport under the PIAA a couple of years ago. And right now there's one classification. And that's based to Chris's point on the number of participating schools. Got it. Once the in the PIAA has a formula. Um, so I think I would envision initially it will be one classification and then it'll probably grow to two, which is kind of where wrestling is right now. So I think it'll follow that similar pathway. 

00:12:23:06 - 00:12:32:23
Jeff Krakoff: Okay, I know it's only been a year, but you have a rival that stands out, you know, just from natural rivalries that Seneca Valley has. 

00:12:33:04 - 00:13:31:19
Chris Eden: Oh yes. We we have a rivals. Um, we we again, you know, one of the big things that girls had expressed early on as they wanted that Friday night experience, you know, and, um, you know, when you play Friday Night Football, there's definitely teams that you see on your schedule. You circle them and you're like, all right, that's the week. Um, and so for last year, we played some really close contested games. Our record last year was 5-4-1. Um, and we were two plays away from being, um, 7-2-1. Um, they are just games that we lost at the last minute. Uh, there's a school, uh, close to us. So it's it's actually in the same, uh, school or same, uh, part of our district. And so again, you know, it's kind of like the east west, north south kind of thing. Um, and so the girls have really picked up on that, and they definitely have that team, uh, circled on our calendar whenever we play them. So, yeah, there's definitely rivals. And it's a the girls are competitive. They're very feisty. 

00:13:31:23 - 00:14:03:20
Jeff Krakoff: Got it. So so now we kind of understand what the game and the sport is all about. I'm curious, have either of you seen just a difference? Um, within the district with with girls just having an opportunity to play another sport and maybe a non-traditional sport such as football. And you mentioned, you know, all the learning and how much fun they're having and how competitive and the rivalries. But are you seeing an impact on campus with with some of the female students? 

00:14:03:24 - 00:15:02:02
Heather Lewis: I see an excitement like, they love football. Um, and I think part of it is the novelty. They haven't been playing it their entire life. I mean, this really just came about in the past couple of years. And so the excitement surrounding it, I see that I see a roster of young people that maybe weren't playing any other sports in our campus. And, and they have found a home with Chris's program. Um, and so we're expanding opportunities. And I also see, um, we've got a good number of dual sport athletes. It's very popular with our girls basketball program. Okay. Um, in the, in the transition. And, um, they're doing a very good job of bringing their friends, um, to to this program. And so it's not a sport that I'm going to worry about participation numbers. If anything, I'm going to worry about participation numbers on the on the high end. Yeah, that would be Chris job when it comes to playing time. 

00:15:02:12 - 00:15:14:03
Jeff Krakoff: Well how do you manage that. Now Chris, you you mentioned very early in this interview you have 40 plus players. Uh, are there 11 on the field at one time or is it a different number. 

00:15:14:06 - 00:16:22:17
Chris Eden: Yeah. So last year we played with two teams. Um, and we play seven on seven. Traditionally you'll see a lot of, uh, you know, club teams and actually as a whole, uh, you know, flag football is going to be an Olympic sport at the next Olympics and they're going to play five on five, but we play a traditional seven on seven. Um, and again, for, for me, um, with having a large group at times it can be a challenge. But basically what I do is I break people up in a player packages. Um, so we, we use like cars. So we would use like a Ferrari, Lamborghini, Mustang or uh, something else. And basically that group, they just spread onto the field. So again, with our upbeat RPO offense, right. It allows us to get more people onto the field. Um, and then defensively, um, we just get every three plays, we try to rotate people in so that everyone's getting in and getting a chance. Um, last year at times it was a little bit of a challenge, but this year, um, adding more coaches, we're going to be, um, you know, in a much better situation to get a lot more people and, and just to keep people fresh. 

00:16:22:24 - 00:16:34:27
Jeff Krakoff: Yeah. So I did want to ask you, I caught word that you want a prestigious award, Chris. The Good Neighbor Award from NexTier Bank. What is that all about? And congrats, by the way. 

00:16:35:05 - 00:18:01:00
Chris Eden: Thank you. Um, yeah. So basically it was a word from NexTier Bank. Uh, just about somebody in the in the community, I guess, going up and beyond, um, you know, kind of what what they're supposed to be doing. Um, and I was very fortunate to win it through our through my efforts with our girls varsity flag football team. Um, I'm very grateful and very humble. Uh, this is my first professional award. Um, I actually thought someone was playing a prank on me because I got a phone call early in the morning, and I don't check my phone. Um, because I'm teaching, and I got a voicemail, and then I was like, what? I was like, someone's. One of our football coaches on staff is probably playing a prank. Like, you know, we do those kind of things. And then, um, I got an email and that's when it really hit home to me. Um, you know, last year and anything I do, I always go full, full speed all out. There is no slow down. It's 120%. Um, and I do that not only just because it's just the expectation I have for myself, but it's what I have for my program. It's what the girls deserve, right? And I know this award was for me, but really, I think it should be for our program and just what we've been able to do. Um, and for me, it just fuels my passion to just do more, to drive and to to keep pushing the limits. Um, and that's kind of what my message was to myself, uh, this year for this season is to do more because, again, it's in the best interest of the girls, it's the best interest of the program. And more importantly, it's the best interest of our community. 

00:18:01:07 - 00:18:13:10
Jeff Krakoff: So okay, so how does it work? Are there going to be tryouts every year and when when do those take place or is it just signing up. Are there cuts. How does that work? 

00:18:14:01 - 00:20:44:24
Chris Eden: Well, that is the million dollar question. Um, well, currently what I did this year, uh, was we had offseason practices. Uh, we started in December. We met twice in December and then in January. Um, again, all of this is inside. We made it our RGMS MPR. Uh, we started out meeting one day a week and then, you know, two days a week and basically and these practices, um, we just slowly installed and just teach. I'm a firm believer in just teaching every moment you have. Right. I think you're I mean, there's always time to teach and build and grow. Um, because again, in football, yeah, you can go out and play the sport and sure, you could have some success, but to be really great, which is what this program is going to be, um, driven to do, is to be great. You have to put a lot of effort in, right? I think. I think for the girls, um, and even some of the girls had just had recently come out, I feel like they didn't realize how much time and preparation goes into football. Um, and so for us, we just had to start from ground one, and we're just working our way up. Um, as it stands now, we have about 55 girls actively on our roster. Um, we are this this week was like a preseason week. Um, this week I hired or this, uh, last week I hired about 10 coaches. So now that we have we we now have a position coach for every position on the field. Uh, we also have a position coach, uh, on the field for both offense and defensive side. So for this week it was just kind of a trial and error. Uh, last night we had practice. Uh, and I can honestly say last night was one of the best practices I think I've ever been a part of, either as a head coach or in any other program. Just the passion, the excitement, the enthusiasm. Not only so much for the girls, but also for the coaches, because again, it just it gives everyone a chance to be belong to something great. Right? I think in life you can do things that are good and you can kind of, you know, get in some teams and you know, you can just kind of hang out. But for our program, right, we we truly want to embrace, like, you know, giving everyone an opportunity to be great and to give someone a chance. Right. And that's kind of what we've really been, um, you know, harping on, um, as it goes into next week, um, we don't I don't think we have to make any cuts now. Um, just because I think logistically we'll be able to get everyone on the field. But I do see cuts probably being a thing in the future just because of, um, you know, how many people want to be a part of our program. So for me, I just take it day by day and we'll just see what happens. 

00:20:44:29 - 00:21:20:25
Heather Lewis: How lucky is this community, Jeff, to have somebody like Chris and the passion that he has. Um, these are the good days of my job as the athletic director is when you get somebody who can have the balance of teaching through sport, um, inspiring young people. And I'm telling you to, to watch the energy of these kids. And in this program, um, these are what you call the good days in my world and my job because, um, Chris works his tail off for these young people, and and they respond and they respect. And it's really it's fun to watch. 

00:21:21:06 - 00:21:50:24
Jeff Krakoff: Yeah. I was going to say you you had a home run, but I should say touchdown on Chris. You've got an educator. You've got a guy who's got football knowledge and background. And you can just see the the passion of what you want to do to make it a great experience for all the girls and also to be competitive and win games. So yeah, that's a touchdown. So for anybody that wants to learn more, get involved, become part of the team. Where do they go? Who do they talk to. 

00:21:52:00 - 00:23:21:27
Chris Eden: So there's a couple different ways. Um, you know, you can get ahold of me. Uh, if you're a student at Seneca Valley, you can send me a Teams message. Um, you can also reach out to me via email at edencd@svsd.net. Um, we also have a website which is svgfb.com . Um, so that the first thing I did last year was I made a website. Um, and currently it's getting updated. So I'll post the, I'll post the schedule and a lot more information. Um, so people can find that website is a great resource not only for here at Seneca Valley, but for other programs. Um, again, also for the Steelers too. And then, uh, one of the things that I, uh, I took on last year. I think sometimes you take your weaknesses and you try to make them strengths is we have a social media page and we use Instagram and our Instagram handle is Seneca Valley Girls Flag football. And last year we started out with zero followers. And as of last night we have 384. So uh, I do all the social media, um, which again was a challenge for me. Uh, I don't really do it personally, but I know it's really important to grow the program and to also showcase, uh, our community of what we do. Right? Our girls are tremendous, and they love it. And, you know, we have fun stuff. So, um, those are just some ways that you can, you know, get involved with our program or also, you know, get in contact with me. 

00:23:22:04 - 00:23:29:12
Jeff Krakoff: All right. Is there anything either of you would like to add that we didn't cover that you want people to know about the the girls flag football program? 

00:23:29:14 - 00:23:37:27
Heather Lewis: Come out and watch and play. That's you know, when that schedule gets posted. Um, they are fun to watch play. That's what I would say. 

00:23:37:29 - 00:25:07:10
Chris Eden: Yeah, I will add to that. The big thing for, for me is football is fun, right? You know, I think there's times in life where we choose sports and we just kind of like, you know, maybe we played it when we were younger and it's just what you do. But for me, football is my passion. Football is my love. And it's so cool to watch these girls embrace my passion and my love for football as well. Um, last year we had a and this was, I think like a big assessment piece for me was we had a, um, all-girl football team where we're game where the girls actually coached themselves. So my, my, um, my goal was, if I do this right, if I'm a good enough teacher or, you know, we've put the time and for the girls, they should be able to take all of our concepts and basically teach themselves or run it themselves. And so last year in one of our games, which was our home football game, we had our, uh, what I call our blue and black game and our in our blue and black game. Uh, the girls coach themselves and I just me and the coaches, we just sat back, we watched and they just they they played themselves. And it was it was incredible. Um, I joked after the game, I was like, well, I mean, you guys did such a great job. I'm done. So good luck. Like, but they're like, oh no, no, no. Like. So it's in our in our program. It's not just a coach center team to play a team where the girls have a voice and they have a say and they, you know, have a choice too. And I think it's something very important that, you know, as we go forward in our program that we only embrace and just keep building upon great stuff. 

00:25:07:12 - 00:25:32:00
Jeff Krakoff: Well, again, anybody that wants to get involved in the team, please contact, you've got the information, please check out games whether they're home or away this spring. Good luck with the upcoming season. And thanks for joining us. So we had head coach Chris Eden, who's also a middle school health and physical education teacher and director of athletics and activities, Heather Lewis, thanks so much for all this great info. 

00:25:32:02 - 00:25:32:29
Heather Lewis: Thank you for having me. 

00:25:33:06 - 00:25:34:03
Jeff Krakoff: Yeah. All right. Have a great. 

00:25:34:05 - 00:25:35:08
Chris Eden: Day. Well thank you.