Rec Department Changing Football Leagues

The Stephens County Recreation Department recently joined the North Georgia Youth Football Association, changing the way youth athletes are being trained.

Director of the Rec. Department Richard Adams told WNEG News what changes this league brings.

“The league that we used to be in and have been in for several years is a recreational league,” said Adams. “Normally, in a recreational league you’ll play in a dual age group, but this North GA Association that we joined is separated out in single age groups, except the 5 and 6 year olds. It joins with all these other teams in Northeast GA that we’ll be playing and traveling to and putting more excitement, and I think value in the whole program.”

Adams said that this will provide more consistent training for athletes.

“As you go into this, Coach Barden at the middle school and I have met several times and what this will do is put us in the basic part of running what they do at the high school,” said Adams. “What’s been happening in the past years, they’ve been playing rec ball and having different coaching styles, then they’d go to the middle school and have to change to another coaching style and then at the high school they’d change again. The whole time they’ve got three training periods that only should be one. It’ll be a natural thing once they get to the high school.”

Fees are going up to cover the extra costs of joining this league and as a result, the rec department is now looking for business sponsors to help cover those costs.

There are three levels of sponsorship, including gold, silver and bronze. According to Adams, they are looking to raise a total of $14,000. He explained what the sponsorship will include.

“We are planning on buying some breakaway banners. They’ll run through them at each place and then we’ll put them back together and hang them on the fence, that would be the sponsorship,” said Adams. “That would be in seven different places each Saturday. And that’s putting your name or the business’ name out all over Northeast GA.”

Stephens County teams will be in the NFC Western Division, competing against teams in Flowery Branch, Gainesville, Habersham and West Hall.

For more information, visit www.ngyfa.org.