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Baltimore Sun to recognize Flag Football Players
HUSKIE QB Dave Mitchell and TE Hue Bibbs will be featured Sunday December 10th in the Baltimore Sun in an article by Nancy Jackson.
Mitchell, Commissioner of Bull"DOG" Flag-Football and Bibbs,48 who is the oldest player in the league will be recognized for their part of the games past and ongoing growing success.
ORIGIN and BULLDOG MITCHELL'S CRUSADE
The Maryland Bull"DOG' Flag-football organization has run through the United States Flag & Touch League (U.S.F.T.L.) since fall 1994.
It was derived from the Glen Burnie, Maryland area starting in 1978 when friends began playing at recess at Glendale Elementary School.
Bulldog, was a nickname that my friend Brian, started giving me because when I ran the ball I was tenacious and hard to bring down. It caught on and everyone started calling me 'Bulldog'. I felt it did define my character because I was also sagatious and a cohesive person in alot of ways, so I took off with it.
We formed a league there before graduating to Marley Middle School. At Marley I organized the Glen Burnie Neighborhood Football League (G.B.N.F.L.), where our team (GlenGardens Bulldogs), from 1983-1985 played on Sundays in the fall against other neighborhoods, communities or groups. From 1986-89 I went on to play High School football, but on Sundays we would still get up a team to play other teams that challenged. My cousin Keven and I would also play an annual game against one another that turned out to dedicated to my late foster father George W. Mitchell, who not only supported me in sports but also would go around and pick up most of the guys before games on Sundays and take us to the field. Alot of guys came to know him and love, and appreciate him as the team patriarch.
From 1990-93, things remained relatively dormant, until 1994 I working as Sports Director for the Anne Arundel County Y.M.C.A. and friends promted me to organize a Flag-football league. From there I became affiliated with the U.S.F.T.L. and after the Y.M.C.A. in the county closed, I carried the league, teams and its players to form the Maryland Bull'DOG' Flag-football League from Fall 1994-Spring 2000.
Since the U.S.F.T.L. has grown along with flag football in general across the country, I've been the Commissioner of 10 successful seasons (fall'94, fall'95, spring '96, fall'96, spring '97, fall'97, fall'98,spring'99, fall'99, spring 2000) and 13 successful tournaments in between those seasons that has featured 43 teams in the 9-man style play on the A,B,C levels.
I have done my best 'with the cooperation of others' to uphold the integrity as well as the rules and regulations of the sport, in order to substantiate 'the structure' and to promote the growth of flag-football through the U.S.F.T.L. in the the State of Maryland, concentrating efforts in the Anne Arundel County and Baltimore Metropolitan area.
From Fall 2000, Spring '01, Fall '01, Spring '02, Fall'02, and Fall '03 Bull'DOG' Flag-Football still has sponsored 9-man in Maryland as being the host website to the EDRECO BALTIMORE COUNTY 9-man League, in which I played in. I have continued to be a Representative to the U.S.F.T.L. in working with Executive Director Mike Cihon on seasonal tournaments (NIT's) in this area.
In Spring 2004 I opened the (B.D.F.F.L.) BullDOG Flag Football League back up and started up a new COLTS franchise after my favorite NFL team since I was 7, finishing 2nd in the league. We came back in the Fall '04 to prevail as Champions in another 2004 B.D.F.F.L. season.
I then opened the Spring '05 season in Howard County and then also ran the league in Fall '05 and Spring '06. However, after the county promises on being able to use the new state of the art turf field for the last season fell through, most teams left the USFTL and joined the Union league in upper Baltimore county. I then decided to go back to college and get my degree in History & Education. After about 2 years I now carry a 4.0 GPA and am in Honors English classes. The goal is to transfer to University of Maryland or Johns Hopkins in order to pursue a professorship and doctrine as a historian and scholar. At 37, after much momentum, and alot of calls from teams and individuals that want me to keep the league going, I still desire to run the league for new teams willing to participate in a well structured league. My emphasis will be on sportsmanship through competition. This can only come through the absolute cooperation of all coaches and players, for future seasons.
 | | My dad in his playing days |
Playground (from League of Their Own)
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