TULSA, Okla. — Former Green Bay Packers receiver Donald Driver is empowering young women in sports by bringing girls' flag football to 11 high schools across the Tulsa area.
The second season of girls' flag football is now underway in Green Country, marking a significant expansion of opportunities for female athletes.
Driver's mission centers on proving that girls can excel in football just as well as their male counterparts. The 11 participating high schools gathered at Will Rogers High School for a surprise presentation from Driver, BSN Sports, SURGE, and others.
"We just felt like there was an opportunity to do something even greater to empower women in sports," Driver said.
The surprise included a $50,000 donation that provided each team with official uniforms, protective headgear, and warm-up jackets. The field erupted in cheers as teams opened their new equipment packages.
Cecret Butler, a sophomore at Hale High School, expressed her excitement about the investment in girls' sports.
"I was excited. It was like, we're getting new uniforms," Butler said.
Butler believes attention is finally shifting toward women's athletics.
"It's amazing, because really, nobody pays attention to women's sports, because everybody just focuses on men's sports. So women are technically irrelevant until now," Butler said.
Hale coach Rebecca Berea, a former player who grew up with limited support for women's sports, sees this initiative as transformative beyond just equipment.
"I'm very excited to be here, just around the game, the girls, and just the community of that empowerment to women and where it's going and how it can change their lives, and just all these opportunities that we didn't have growing up," Berea said.
The teams are learning to work together, support each other, and prove they belong on the field. Driver emphasized the determination he sees in these young athletes.
"They have this dog in them that most people wouldn't think a woman would have, but they had it, and they proved that they can accomplish anything they want to accomplish," Driver said.
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