Special Olympics NC Unified Sports Participates in Flag Football at NC State

This fall was the first year that NC State and University Recreation have partnered with Special Olympics Unified to plan a flag football league. This brings people with and without intellectual disabilities together on the field, allowing them to compete together. Students and Special Olympic athletes were split into four teams, and students and athletes were able to meet each other and begin learning the fundamentals of flag football. After practices and scrimmages, these turned into games with recreation jerseys and officials.

NC State freshman Kennedy Houze said, “ When I first came in, I thought we would just be helping the Special Olympics athletes out and I thought that they were just going to play a game, but it was really cool that we got to play with them. I also found out that almost all of them are better than me.” Along with that, Markus Sanders, a Special Olympics Wake County athlete said, “I visualize it every night, it’s fun and challenging.”

The final game of the season was November 17, and the season was a huge success. Along with NC State, Winston-Salem State University, Methodist University, and UNC-Wilmington also offered Unified Flag Football as part of their collegiate recreation program. Word has spread and other universities plan to join for next season.

Additional coverage can be found at the Special Olympics North Carolina website.