Purdue University Northwest has added more than 300 student athletes since 2012—including flag football players.
Nearly 400 colleges will compete at the club or varsity level next spring, making women’s flag football one of the fastest-growing collegiate sports. Athletic directors say it’s a useful recruitment tool, too.
Brown repeatedly emailed Sacramento State’s athletics director and university president, and finally got a response from president Luke Wood. He told her “‘to create the petition’ so he could see the interest,” she said. “And I just went right to work.”
Her petition garnered over 360 signatures. The effort paid off: Last month, Sacramento State announced it will launch a club women’s flag football team for this academic year. For 2027–28, officials plan to transition the program to an NCAA Division I sport.
Raia Brown played flag football in high school and petitioned Sacramento State to start a team.Erin Harwell
