CUMBERLAND COUNTY, Pa. — As the athletes arrived for the 67th Big 33 Football Classic on Saturday, there was something different.
The high school football all-star game that's been around for decades, was ready to bring something new into the fold.
"We started some sort of communication, I'm going to say 12-14 months ago. It was slow at first and it kind of morphed itself and once the NFL got involved in the meetings and pushing things forward, it really started to roll," recalled PSFCA & Big 33 Executive Director Gary Cathell.
Peyton Davis is no stranger to the Big 33. Her brother, Wyatt, played for Team Maryland in 2022. She wanted to be a part of the annual weekend as a cheerleader, but the audition schedule didn't line up with her schedule.
That's when another option became available.
"My daughter, playing with my son and all of his friends growing up, fell in love with the fact that flag football started in Frederick County for the first time, ever," claimed Peyton and Wyatt's mom Peggy. "The Ravens sponsored them as the inaugural team for Maryland and a couple of months ago was invited to come and play for the Ravens again here at the Big 33"
"It means a lot to me," said Peyton. "Just to see it grow and keep going and know I was the first one to do it, it's cool."
"They might be the first Maryland brother-sister team to play football," added Peggy.
For the first time, sponsored girls flag football teams from the Eagles, Ravens, Commanders, and Steelers were invited to a tournament as part of the big all-star football weekend.
"I used to play football with my brothers and my cousins. I thought it used to be fun. When I went to high school, I noticed that they had a flag football team and I wanted to try out to see how it was," said Natalie Salvador of the Commanders flag football team.
"They're very shifty out there, just looking at some of their footwork," said NFL Legends Youth Advisory Committee co-chair and former Eagles cornerback Bobby Taylor. "I mean, they're going up and catching the ball at its highest point. So it's fun."
The belief is that the tournament might be the first in the country to be part of a high school all-star event, and as long as the Big 33 Game gets its way, it won't be the last.
"We may morph it into a Pennsylvania versus Maryland actual Big 33 game in the future," pondered Cathell.