Interview with Maddie Melton — ETBU Women’s Flag Football

Courtesy ETBU Women’s Flag Football

MARSHALL, Texas (TXAN 24) - Below is the interview with Head Women’s Flag Football Coach Maddie Melton:

Courtesy ETBU Women’s Flag Football

Q1: Over the last several months we’ve seen a real domino effect in the world of flag football. Team USA announced USA Football’s involvement about 32 weeks ago, followed by confirmation that flag football will be part of the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles. Since then, the NFL has backed men’s, women’s, and youth flag football on a national scale. The USOPC’s CEO Sarah Hirshland even told us that “selfishly, we want to field the best team in the world — right here in America.”

With East Texas’ long history of producing NFL talent, how confident are you that we’ll see that same level of development and opportunity on the women’s side?

A1: "I'm very confident." said Melton "I've only been around the sport for few months and I've seen how much its grown, even in just this time." She continue by saying "It's just a matter of time for East Texas"

Q2: This fall we covered the full season of the East Texas Touchdown Queens in Tyler, and one concern we heard from players was injuries. With your background, how does this new ETBU program set itself apart when it comes to injury prevention and protecting young women stepping into the sport?

A2: "I have first hand experience in this area, just being an athlete who just finished their career. I have injuries that could have been prevented," she stated, "I'm going to take that into the program and help us be successful."

Q3: For this inaugural year, what does a successful first season look like for the ETBU women’s flag football program? What are the goals or milestones you’re hoping to reach?

A3: "We want to bring in 20 new players to experience our University and from there its about setting the foundation and tone for the future," said Coach Melton.

Watch the interview in its entirety here.