For years, Lou Spano has been imagining a youth football league that doesn't discriminate because of weight, groups players by age, and fosters a strong respect for other North Shore programs.
Beginning this August, Spano's vision will become a reality when the Northeast Conference Youth Football League plays its inaugural season.
The youth football leagues in Beverly, Swampscott, Salem and Lynn have agreed to part ways with Pop Warner football to join this new league (NECYFL), which will play under the umbrella of the American Youth Football League.
The first season will feature home-and-home games between the four towns, with the possibility of additional games against teams from the similar Cape Ann Youth Football League. A league playoff system will also be put into place.
Spano anticipates more local programs joining in the upcoming years, notably Marblehead and Danvers (both of which are already independent from Pop Warner) as well as Peabody, Gloucester, Winthrop and Saugus.
"I think Pop Warner is a great organization. I feel that way about any local youth leagues that do great things for the kids, as long as the best interest of the kids is at heart. I felt like Pop Warner was losing sight of that," Spano, the former president of Swampscott Pop Warner, said.
"It seemed like there was too much pressure to get to the national (Pop Warner) tournament, and there was a bit too much money spent traveling. The age and weight restrictions also became inappropriate. There was a conflict of levels with freshmen (in high school) weighing too much, while sophomores who could make the weight limit could play Pop Warner. It created age and weight mismatches at times."
Unlimited weight limit
The NECYFL will be grade-based, meaning players will be grouped by their year in school as opposed to putting weight restrictions on levels of play.
The clear benefit of a system like this is that bigger kids, who are either forced to play with older players or are pushed out of the league in Pop Warner because they are heavier, still have a spot in the NECYFL.
That is just one of many reasons why the local high school coaches support the NECYFL.
"One of the things we've seen is that teams are really starting to dip down in numbers. The weight limit (of Pop Warner) has kept a lot of kids out," Beverly High head coach Dan Bauer said.
"In the NECYFL, there isn't a weight limit. It's unlimited, so we should see all the bigger kids come out. We're losing a lot of them at the high school level because they can't play Pop Warner. If they haven't tried (football by high school), then it's 50-50."
Spano spent years talking about changes he'd like to see made to Pop Warner, and during his discussions over the years he found many allies.
Town organization presidents Tracy Ventura (Lynn), Scott Faulkner (Swampscott), Brian Simard (Salem), and Hank McLaughlin (Beverly) shared Spano's view of youth football, as did league Vice President of Football Shawn Hubauer, Vice President of Cheering Maura Laudano, and Safety Director Jeff Munroe.
The league will also focus on cheering, with a new competition structure that has a point system that will allow more cheerleaders to get a chance to compete.
"We just want the kids to play," Spano said. "We won't have a national tournament concept or even a regional concept. We'll have a local tournament, probably round robin.
"We think it's going to start off very well. We can only hope that other (cities and towns) will join but we can't worry about that. We'll fix any bumps that come up and see where we're progressing."
Benefitting more kids
Everyone, especially the local high school coaches, seem to think the league will have no trouble both getting off the ground and expanding.
"What a great way to start rivalries early on," Salem High head coach Scott Connolly said. "Seventh and eight grade kids will be working together on the field. They'll develop the whole team unity thing a lot early and start getting to know the rivalries at a younger age. Pop Warner plays a lot of other teams than we do during the high school season. I think it's great for youth football in Salem and all the towns."
Ultimately, the belief is that more kids will get involved at an early age. If that happens, the future of the high school teams should benefit.
"I think it's crazy to limit what kids can do. That's the (Pop Warner) system and that's fine, but I'm glad we're moving away from that," Bauer said.
"It's not like when we were younger that if you couldn't play (in a league), you'd play anyway (on your own). It's a different generation now. Kids aren't playing in the street and then going to do homework; it's video games and then homework. I think it will translate to more participation at the high school level."
NECYFL Registration Info
The Northeastern Conference Youth Football League, which is replacing Pop Warner in Beverly, Salem, Swampscott and Lynn for the upcoming season, is in the process of putting together registrations for the inaugural season. Here are the registration dates (if available) for the participating towns, as well as contact information:
Salem — May 13. Contact Brian Simard at 978-741-4360.
Swampscott — May 14 and 19. Contact Scott Faulkner at 617-212-8518
Lynn — May 24. Contact Tracy Ventura at 781-599-6518.
Beverly — Contact Hank McLaughlin at 978-361-7475.
More information can also be found at www.necyfl.com.
