See who triumphed at the 2024 NIRSA Championship Series flag football tournament

The 2024 NIRSA National Flag Football Championships brought an exciting conclusion to the year with a thrilling tournament in Florida. In collaboration with the University of North Florida, Clay County, and the Jacksonville Jaguars, the NIRSA Championship Series proudly welcomed 34 teams from across the nation to compete for top honors. These teams competed in four divisions for the title of NIRSA Flag Football 2024 National Champions.

The week was filled with intense competition and memorable matchups, with most games held at the Clay County Sports Complex in Middleburg, Florida. However, Championship Day elevated the experience with VIP treatment for players and fans alike, as the final games were played at the Flex Field at iconic EverBank Stadium, home of the Jacksonville Jaguars.

CoRec Division

The University of Georgia’s High School Has Beens returned to the national tournament determined to defend their back-to-back National Championship titles from 2022 and 2023. After receiving a first-round bye to bracket play, they faced the University of Houston in the semifinals. Houston put up a strong showing, but the Has Beens came away with the 40-24 win to advance to the championship game. On the other hand, Georgia College’s Future Parents made a strong impression with convincing win over the University of Maryland, shutting them out 20-0 to advance to the title game.

The championship game was a tightly contested battle as the High School Has Beens and the Future Parents battled it out for the top spot. The Has Beens jumped out to an early lead, up by six points at the half. Despite a hard fought second half by the Future Parents, four touchdown passes and a touchdown run from quarterback Jack Oblen ultimately were enough to take the University of Georgia’s High School Has Beens to the top spot. The 32-27 victory earned the University of Georgia its third consecutive National Championship title.

Unified Division

The Unified Division featured great competition and a lot of fun throughout the entire tournament. In the semifinals, the University of Nebraska successfully secured a spot in the championship game after a 27-18 win over the University of Utah. On the other side of the semifinal’s bracket, the University of Florida took on Mississippi State and was able to secure a 46-26 victory to advance to the championship tie.

The Unified Championship game was a high scoring affair with an electric atmosphere. Both teams were firing on all cylinders and combined for 12 total touchdowns. However, it was the University of Florida that came out on top. Randy Godbolt’s seven touchdown passes on the day led the University of Florida Gators to a 50-31 win as they chomped their way to a National Championship.

Women’s Division

The women’s division saw another championship day featuring cross state rivals from the University of Central Florida and the University of Florida. After receiving a first-round bye, UCF’s defense shined as they defeated Maryland in a convincing display, only allowing Maryland a safety. UCF then shut out Florida Atlantic to make it to the championship game. On the other side of the bracket, UF had a similarly impressive defense in their bracket run. They shut out UGA before defeating Florida State 27-6 to advance to the championship match.

The University of Florida started the game strong and never turned back. Despite UCF’s impressive defense in earlier rounds of bracket play, they were unable to stop a high-powered Florida offense. Quarterback Meike Row connected with receiver Maci Joncich on 12 occasions during the championship game, three of which ended in touchdowns. And if three passing touchdowns weren’t enough, Rowe also ran the ball in for a score. The explosive play from Florida led them to 32-0 victory over Central Florida to claim another National Championship.

The win for Florida in an all-Sunshine State final further solidified the state’s dominance in the Women’s Division; no school outside of Florida has claimed a Women’s National Championship since 2006.

Men’s Division

In the final of the Men’s Division, South Texas College faced off against Grambling State University. South Texas College received a first-round bye in the bracket before defeating NC State Pack 31-6 and South Texas defeated GSU Maruchan Instant Lunch 31-7 to advance to the Championship game.  Grambling State also had a first-round bye, but their quarterfinal game proved to be much more difficult. After a fiercely competitive game against Georgia College’s Daddy’s, Grambling State secured the 21-20 win in overtime.

The Championship game was intense, with South Texas College and Grambling State both battling to score. With both teams displaying a strong defense, ultimately it came down to two touchdown passes from Michael “Lunchbox” Saenz put South Texas College’s Kingfish on top. With a 13- 6 final score, the Kingfish claimed their National Championship crown.

Positive sporting behavior awards

Winning the positive sporting behavior awards were the University of Houston in the CoRec Division, Regis University in the Unified Division, University of North Florida in the Women’s Division, and Georgia College State University in the Men’s Division. All schools should be commended for adhering to the most integral component of intercollegiate competition: positive sporting behavior.

Thank you!

A special thanks go out to all our student officials. Their contributions are essential to the success of the tournament experience. Congratulations to all on a fantastic tournament and especially to our All-American officials!

• Lanai Coleman, Mercer University
• Amari Harrington, University of Maryland
• Matt Joanes, Arizona State University
• Isabell Price, University of Central Florida
• Maddie Prospero, The Ohio State University
• DeJonTae Robertson, Georgia Southern University
• Brandon Smith, University of Central Florida
• John Smith, University of Missouri, Columbia

A huge thank you to the NIRSA Championship Series tournament staff for their dedicated support throughout this tournament! NIRSA relies on incredible volunteers from across the country to deliver top-notch tournaments and to make possible the many unforgettable experiences for our student participants and officials. NIRSA couldn’t do it without volunteer support!

NIRSA Tournament Committee

• Roger Jerez, University of Pennsylvania
• Josh Hale, University of Texas at Arlington
• Nicole Jackson, NIRSA Staff
• Lauren Carlson, NIRSA Staff

Tournament Experience Committee

• Stephanie Calhoun, Georgia Southern University
• Jordan Cox, Furman University
• AJ Henderson, Florida Gulf Coast University
• James Hinson, Valparaiso University
• Jerrell Kelly, University of Colorado – Boulder
• Adam Minnick, University of North Georgia
• Brittany Mueller, Florida State University
• Cynthia Reyes, Methodist University
• Sam Wary, Millersville University
• Laci Scoggin, Georgia Tech
• Rachel Vermeltfoort, West Virginia University
• Aaron White, Millersville University
• Brenna Wortham, Kennesaw State University

Competition Committee

• Megan Brady, University of Maryland
• Emily Schneider, Texas A&M University

Officials Committee

• Fauz Adeyinka, Clemson University
• Paden Alie, Purdue University
• Kaulin Andric, Texas A&M University
• Juan Carlos Diaz, University of Tennessee – Knoxville
• Isaac Estrada, Florida State University
• Scott Flickinger, SUNY Cortland
• Nathan Ha, University of Texas at Arlington
• Hunter Hoover, University of MississippiEmilee Howard, University of Central Florida
• Julie Johnson, University of Maryland
• Danny Kandell, University of Florida
• Kurt Klier, University of Maryland
• Britton Lyon, Georgia Southern University
• Alex Pettola, Mercer University
• Clifford Richardson, Oklahoma State UniversityJoe Wise, University of Texas at Austin

Media Committee

• Cendall Barton, Louisiana State University
• Katelyn Gill, Georgia Southern University
• Courtney Smith, Louisiana State University
• Nikki Vance, University of Oregon

Operations Committee

• Dianna Choque, University of Tennessee – Knoxville
• Nikki Mejido, University of North Florida
• Alex Pendar, University of Wisconsin River Falls
• Eric Vaughn, Missouri State University

Unified Committee

• Jordan German, Texas Tech University
• Laura Shively, Duke University

Thanks to the tournament hosts and sponsors

A special thanks go out to University of North Florida, Clay County, and the Jacksonville Jaguars for their outstanding contributions to a great tournament!

Thank you to our presenting sponsor NFL FLAG for their involvement at both the Regional and National Flag Football Championship Series Tournaments. The player’s involvement in the NFL activations QB throw, longest punt, and 40m dash truly enhanced the tournament experience.

Congratulations to all the teams, officials, and staff for making the tournament experience a wonderful one. We hope to see everyone next year at the 2025 NIRSA National Flag Football Championships!