By Michael Purtell
It’s gridiron season, which means college programs across the nation are kicking off in the NCAA.
For Plattsburgh State, it means the Backyard Football League has begun its season behind Memorial Hall.
The BFL is a 4-on-4 flag football league that is staffed and organized by Plattsburgh State students, unassociated with Plattsburgh State Athletics and recreation. Commissioner Sam Morse, an accounting major, runs the eight-team league, with each team rostering seven to nine students as athletes and coaches.
Teams currently include: the Baltimore Blue Crabs, Virginia Vipers, Washington Wolves, Montreal Monkeys, Tennessee Tigers, Jacksonville Jammers, Georgia Grizzlies and Scranton Squirrels.
“He puts a lot of effort into the league,” said Jayden Neptune, quarterback for the Jammers. “It’s nice to see someone put that much effort into something that is a really, really good time for others.”
The BFL was revived with Morse last fall, although it looked much different in his Vermont hometown. Originally, he organized wiffle ball matches with his friends and neighbors. When he transferred to Plattsburgh, interest in wiffle ball wasn’t as strong, so Morse made the switch to football.
“Coming into college I thought, ‘I don’t want to give up on this idea yet, it’s a lot of fun.’ So I ended up bringing it here,” Morse said. “Luckily I was able to find enough people.”
The school no longer has an official football program, and intramural or club football is also absent from campus. When it came to drumming up interest for the league last fall, Morse had his work cut out for him.
“The groundwork was a pain in the ass,” Morse said. “I reached out to fraternities to see if they were interested in making teams — and a bunch of them actually ended up making one and still to this day have teams — and then I just reached out to individuals until word-of-mouth spread.”
The BFL doesn’t present itself as a replacement for official school programs. Instead, it exists as an entirely student-focused league — something Neptune believes benefits the BFL.
“I think you keep students’ creative spirits alive and you see how much you can do with something independent,” Neptune said.
Each season has seen rosters change dramatically and rules adjusted in the offseasons to try and refine the league to be as fun and competitive as possible.
The league’s competitiveness is one of its greatest qualities, according to Neptune. It’s especially true when it comes to facing familiar opponents.
“I’m playing against a bunch of people that I know and see all the time, so there’s bragging rights if you beat the guys that you know,” Neptune said. “It gives you that extra edge to try to go out there and beat them.”
The league has been a great help to developing those social ties, with players building connections with each other over the seasons of competing against each other. The league is always something for those involved to talk about.
“I’ve met people that I would probably never meet doing this,” Morse said.
Morse also runs the league’s social media pages, livestreams games, collects stats, creates schedules and pays out of pocket for custom uniforms.
The league has amassed more than 500 followers on both its YouTube channel and its Instagram page.
Morse’s work on the league has created something special on campus, but its future is uncertain. When he graduates, the league may leave with him.
Unlike many clubs and recreational teams on campus, the BFL isn’t suffering membership issues. In fact, Morse has a list of students looking to join, with no spots available.
“It’s probably a lot more work than someone would expect if they were to try and fill my shoes,” Morse said. “That’s up to someone else if they want to keep it going or not.”
