Montclair State University’s new flag football program held its first official preseason practice last , marking an early step toward a groundbreaking opening season, after being announced as a developing varsity program in Dec. 2024.
The Red Hawks radiated with anticipation as they trekked from the locker room to Sprague Field, touching the turf for the first time this preseason.
!["It was an emotional day because it was the first of everything," said Montclair State head coach Jim Kelly. "You always want to be better. But I think there were some great signs of people knowing their assignments and [being] able to execute." Tim David | The Montclarion](https://themontclarion.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/DSCF7108-2.jpg)
Montclair State flag football head coach Jim Kelly addresses the team after a February 2026 practice. Tim David | The Montclarion
“It was an emotional day because it was the first of everything,” said new head coach Jim Kelly. “I was happy with our tempo. I was happy with, for the most part, our execution. You always want to be better. But I think there were some great signs of people knowing their assignments and [being] able to execute.”
The practice kicks off an 18-day buildup to the regular season, when Montclair State will begin its inaugural season at home against Mercy University. It will be the first collegiate game of women’s flag football ever played in New Jersey.
Montclair State flag football opens its season on March 9 at home against Mercy University. Tim David | The Montclarion
Even with plenty of work to be done, Kelly feels confident in his players after day one.
“I feel confident that each day they’re going to come and give me the effort,” Kelly said. “I think eventually we’re going to be very competitive. That’s where I’m confident that we will get better each day.”
Kelly enters the program with bounds of experience in the New Jersey football landscape. A graduate of Montclair State in 1981, he has spent years at the local high school and collegiate level.
Head coaching stints at established programs, such as the Caldwell University sprint football team, as well as an eight-year tenure as an assistant under Montclair State’s Rick Giancola, have prepared him for the moment. He has also taken part in the rise of women’s flag football in recent years.
After graduating in 1981 and serving as an assistant on the football team from 2005-2012, flag football head coach Jim Kelly is back at his alma mater to build a new program. Tim David | The Montclarion
“It started about two-and-a-half years ago, but it’s really taken off in the last year and a half,” Kelly told The Montclarion last March. “Especially here in New Jersey. It’s become very popular, and I see it continuing to grow.”
After the university announced plans to integrate the program into its varsity mix, it has been a steady path toward history. In December of 2025, the New York Jets and the Betty Wold Johnson Foundation provided a $1 million-dollar grant toward the sport in the northeast, sparking the creation of a 15-team Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) women’s flag football league.
This spring, 10 programs will participate, with the final five set to launch in 2027. The season will be celebrated with the upcoming ECAC Media Day set to take place at MetLife Stadium on Feb. 27.
March 9 is a short time away, but Kelly is solely focused on laying the groundwork this early in the calendar.
“I just like the culture we brought,” said Kelly. “The body language, everyone was involved, whether they were in a drill or not. I thought every drill, everyone pressed to be the best. If you can do that, I think that’s key to being successful, to keep on building, day on, day on.”
