Melissa Brizzell, head coach of the Abington Senior High School flag football team, has been named the Eagles Girls Flag Football Coach of the Week following the teams’ third consecutive Suburban One League title.

The Lady Ghosts will be one of the final four teams from Pennsylvania to compete on Saturday, May 31 on their way to becoming the first two-time champion in league history.

“This is why they want to do this. They want to be down at NovaCare. They want to be around that environment. They want to be around the Eagles players. The Eagles won the championship and we want to follow them,” Brizzell said. “We weren’t in the first season, so we didn’t have the chance to be the first team to win. It was Lansdale Catholic and I know Lansdale Catholic is going to be down there. I want to be the first team to win it two times. That’s where we can have our legacy. That’s what I’ve been telling the girls.”

A counselor in the Abington School District for 18 years, Brizzell has coached several of the junior high and varsity sports programs. After the first year of the Eagles Girls Flag Football League, she was approached by one of her students Sydney Brice about starting a team at Abington. Brice played flag football and knew firsthand how the sport could benefit the school.

“I love sports. I believe it’s a place where you can build a positive team. I’m a school counselor and I believe it helps people learn life lessons and be able to grow as indivduals,” Brizzell said.

Maya Johnson, the senior quarterback who was at the helm of the 2023 championship squad, was the first player to be nominated by the Eagles for the Maxwell Football Club’s inaugural Girls National Flag Football Player of the Year in 2024.

Brizzell will also serve as Chestnut Hill College’s first girls flag football head coach this fall, according to the story.

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Photos: Philadelphia Eagles