Local flag football team heading to nationals

“We have a lot of talent and we can work with everybody,” said quarterback Robert Einersen in his No. 4 jersey, taking a quick break to appease the media between drills at a recent practice.
The eleven-year-old sixth grader underscored his team’s “chemistry” and said he and his teammates were like “a family.” The kid’s broadcast-quality allusions were ready for the big time. He seemed to subconsciously scream ‘get me on ESPN!’ which is a good thing, considering the fact that the Flushing native and his fellow New York DAC Panthers might very well encounter a TV crew in the coming month.
After a year of arduous training and a pages-long list of victories, the seven-member Panthers - all but one of whom are from Queens - are heading to Disney World. Contrary to the customary athletic narrative, however - sports star wins championship, heads to Orlando to celebrate with Mickey and the gang - the 11-and-under Panthers are heading south for the championship.
Having beaten teams from Long Island, Staten Island and New Jersey to win the regional title, the Panthers, comprised of the top players from the local De Phillips Athletic Club (DAC) flag football league, will travel to Disney’s Wide World of Sports on November 22 to represent the Greater New York region at the NFL Youth Flag Football Tournament of Champions.
“I honestly think it’s first starting to settle in for all of us, including me,” said Panthers head coach Mark Crames, whose son Ross is on the team. “We kept waiting for that rough spot, to see if we could overcome it, and we never really ran into it.”
Behind Crames, the team was led in drills by assistant coach Sebastian Agosti, whose brother Santiago is a running back and rusher on the Panthers. The players head-faked and shimmied, they dove for flags, and they smiled. They looked ready.
Santiago, or “Santi” as he is called on the field, just likes playing football, plain and simple. “It’s like my favorite sport,” the Little Neck resident said with a shrug and a toothy smile. “My dream was always to be able to go onto a high school team, to be onto the NFL.”
Noting that he only had one year of football coaching experience prior to taking the helm of the Panthers, Crames downplayed his own role in the team’s success, instead focusing the spotlight on his players.
“The first thing you have to have are great kids,” he said. “This is an amazingly coachable group.”
In addition to his players, Crames is also receiving a little help from a flag football veteran named Jimmy Gavalas, who coached the original DAC Panthers to their 2005 NFL Youth Flag national championship, and followed that feat with another championship in 2006 and a trip to the national playoffs in 2007.
Gavalas attributes the Panthers’ continued success to “hard working kids that like to have fun,” but added that the NFL’s “grassroots approach to promoting the game” contributes to the tournament’s allure.
“It’s a great day. The NFL puts up a big event on the regional and national level and these kids just wanna keep going back,” he said.
The goal of the 12-year-old tournament, explained NFL Director of Youth Football Alexia Gallagher, is “to introduce and engage youngsters to football and the NFL experience.” The NFL will cover all player and coach expenses and host a gala dinner for all teams on the eve of the tournament. Additionally, Gallagher said, athletes will have the opportunity to interact with NFL players over the course of their stay in Florida.
Come November, after countless hours of practice on the gridiron - a patch of grass on the western side of Cunningham Park - the Panthers will have their shot at the national title, but Team Mom Linda Zimmern is not concerned with the outcome.
“It’s such a tough world out there, it’s nice to have such a happy thing take over,” said Zimmern, whose son Alec is a safety and wide receiver on the team.
Of course, it doesn’t hurt that the Panthers aren’t playing full-contact football.
“No one’s playing tackle now, which is why I love flag football - it’s safer,” said a smiling Zimmern decked out in a Panthers sweatshirt and holding a football that had “Little Panthers” written on it in silver ink.
“To me, they’re already winners,” she said, praising the players but also the loyal fans - mostly brothers, sisters and parents - who often bring air horns to games.
“The only disappointment we would have is if we don’t give it everything we have,” Crames said as his team prepared to scrimmage a 14-and-under DAC team. “And I have great confidence that with this group I don’t have to worry about that. What we say is ‘no regrets.’ Don’t leave anything on the field, and then you have no regrets, win or lose.”
For their part, though, the players are confident of victory.
Asked what would happen in Florida, Einersen, having Velcroed his playbook onto his forearm, replied, “We’re going to win.”