Week #1 Review

Week 1 is in the books and it was great getting these players back on the field and doing what they love.

Definitely a different vibe to previous openings. For the first time in Bristol Tigers/Bristol Wardogs/Wardogs Elite history, our home games were played at a new facility.

When we lost the Community Park unexpectedly in May we really had to get it together to keep it going. BTSD steps in and helps us out and we live to fight another day. For the first time in 11 years we are in a new league. Moving to PAEAYF was a risky move but one that has already started paying off. We knew there would be a rebuilding period associated with the move. This is where the big boys play and the competitiveness and commitment we require to compete against the best isn’t for everyone.

Shutting down the older teams hurt, tremendously. We know why and will leave it where it is. Our 11/12s have landed on their feet and I check in with them regularly. I thank the coaches that have accepted our boys and given them a fair opportunity. Respect.

So, 3 teams played yesterday. 2 won and 1 lost but they played. Hard. All of them. Honestly, back in May we didn’t know if this day would come. 4 months later and we have 4 young teams, an incredibly impressive foundation, going toe to toe with the best teams in the area. The Wardog Way. Forget what you have heard. It is far from over. Building it brick by brick from within. Wardog Nation. #WD4L

2021 WARDOGS BOARD OF DIRECTORS

EXECUTIVE BOARD (3 YR TERM) TERM EXPIRES 12/2023
President: Bill Smith
Vice President, Operations: Phoebe Walker
Vice President, Athletics: Terry Walker
Accountant: Carol Adamovic
Executive Secretary: Destiny Warriner

BOARD OF DIRECTORS (2 YR TERM) TERM EXPIRES 12/2022
Director, Concessions: LaShanda Bradley
Director, Athletics: Buddy Crawley
Director, Communications: Noelle LaRocco
Director, Facilities: OPEN
Director, Events: Stephanie Tokarski

COORDINATORS ( 1 YR TERM) TERM EXPIRES 12/2021
Competition Coordinator: Josh Dean
Manager, Concessions: Tiana Mobley
Tackle Coordinator: Virgil Mobley
Flag Coordinator: Dontae Wilkerson

2021 Spring Flag Registration Begins

We are starting up the 2021 Spring Flag registration. Please go the provided page as registration will be online only this year.

If you registered for 2020 Spring Flag, you are still registered. We will contact you with details shortly.

We have added a 16U division and ideally will have 4 to 6 teams of 10 players per team.

We are going to register adults full teams for a 6 week season culminating in playoffs and a championship. Details to follow.

REGISTER ONLINE HERE

April 23rd Webinar Review

This is a review of the live webinar broadcast on 4/23.

Depending on when things get started back up, we will have these every couple of weeks or as news is hot.

FLAG

No update for a Flag Football start date. We will start when the township allows it.
If we can get a season started by June 15th we should be able to get it in.
Any time after that, we may suspend the season and look to start in Spring 2021. Again, nothing definitive until we know more.
We cannot offer refunds as the money has been spent on insurance and uniforms.
We cannot allocate funds from flag to tackle registration for the same reason.
NFL Flag released prototypes for their new uniforms which will be public shortly.

TACKLE

Right now we have no details on a start date. We will start when the township allows it.
We feel if we can get on the fields by August, we should be good.
There will be challenges that may greatly impact our season.
Referees, uniform and equipment availability, Phila. parks availability, insurance availability and cost among others.
We are currently looking at alternative end of year tournaments, replacing UYFL National Championships in December.

TACKLE REGISTRATION

Online tackle registration is now available HERE
We ask those who are committed to playing Wardogs in 2020 register ASAP
We are not collecting any money towards registration at this time. We just want to get an idea on membership. There is no commitment
Registration will be the same as 2019. Details on everything related to registration can be found HERE

MISC

Wardogs Boxing will continue operations at Oxford Valley Mall once it reopens.
There will additional synergy between the gym and the other sports including discounted memberships.
There is an interest in cheerleading for 2020 and I have some potential coach/volunteers. Can always use more.
There is a real possibility there will be a Wardogs Wrestling team in 2021. I have of interested coaches.
We would run it out of Wardogs Boxing and start with a few kids and ramp up from there.

Depending on when the quarantine is over, we may have a few more of these in leui of live meetings.
Information will continued to be posted on our Spond application, Facebook page and website (https://thewardogway.com)

Thank you. #WD4L

2020 Fall Tackle Football Registration is NOW OPEN

2020 Tackle Football FAQs are located here

You can register online now here

If you would like to be added to the Spond app for all things Wardogs Athletics (tackle football, flag football, boxing, wrestling) please email [email protected] and you will be added.

We are looking at restarting in-house cheer due to expressed interest. If you are interested in participating or volunteer please email me [email protected]

WARDOG NATION REPORT APRIL 2020

Every month I post, mostly free form, what’s going on, what I hear and my opinion on some things regarding youth football. These opinions are my own and not representative of this organization as a whole.

“We live in strange times. We also live in strange places: each in a universe of our own. The people with whom we populate our universes are the shadows of whole other universes intersecting with our own.” – Douglas Adams

I hope all of you are safe, sane and healthy.

I am going to cover what I can for this months blog. Since these are unprecedented times there are a lot of things up in the air.

FLAG FOOTBALL

Currently, the earliest we could start Flag Football would be May 3rd. I think this is highly optimistic. I hold hope that we can start in June but that is fading as well.

That being said, we will wait and see. We aren’t canceling anything. We are not in a position to give refunds. Two thirds came in at a loss as it is. So we will be playing. When is the question.
One thing is I expect it to be a frantic pace but at the same time should be a lot of fun because we will finally be free.
We will play a 3 or 4 week condensed season. We will make the Championships really special, tournament style. We will have a Consolation Bowl for the teams not playing for the hardware. We will make a day of it that will make them all forget about the great isolation of 2020.
A lot of night games. It will be a great time.
We will be following the township’s lead. When the kids go back to school, we get back on the field.

TACKLE FOOTBALL

There will definitely be changes to the tackle season if this thing goes into June or beyond.
Everything is on the table at this point. Season as normal. Delayed full season. Abbreviated season. Honestly, who knows.
That being said, we are going to start registering players soon. We are going to offer 2019 rates for a period of time and then the price will fall in the $180 – $200 range.
As a reminder, this includes the uniform ($100 for two game jerseys and one game pant, two socks) and all permit, registration and insurance fees.
As always, we will provide fundraising opportunities for you to offset up to 100% of your registration fee.
Also, you will be asked to pay a $40 volunteer fee. You volunteer, you get your $40 back. We will have plenty of coin toss and concession dates available.
Finally, remember that we no longer include helmet and shoulder pads and we will not be selling any. The cost is around $120 per player and the equipment generally lasts 3 to 5 years. Helmets should be black/black. We will help you choose the right stuff if you need assistance.
We have some shoulder pads left that we will give to players that need them, first come first serve. We will also hopefully have some discounts from local vendors available.
We will be ready whenever it is time. With 3 2019 NESAC Championships to defend, we will prepare our players to play tough, competitive football. We have been doing it for 20 years and we just keep getting better at it. A great combination of old school and new blood puts in a unique position to team your player to play this game from all aspects. The Wardog Way.

WARDOGS BOXING GYM

As you you can imagine, nothing going on right now with Wardogs Boxing. Coach Bill Kane is out in the yard punching trees with all of his pent up energy.
Once we return to normal, I suggest everyone in the Wardog Family gets up there and check out what they are doing. I know my heavy bag is all of the medication and therapy I need.
Bill was my partner in Wardogs Boxing Club for 3 years before a near death experience caused me to have to sell. There was unfinished business.
He is now continuing on what we were building and taking it even further. They have already had several standing room only amateur shows and the kids classes are almost at a waiting list. It truly has been a tremendous turnaround.
Look for increased synergy between what we do at the fields and what happens at the gym. Discounted memberships, the forthcoming Wardogs Dungeon and the soon to be Wardogs After School Center.
By the way, we are looking for a few coaches for a soon to come Wardogs Wrestling Team. Yes, that is correct.

NEWS & NOTES

We will have increased concession opportunities throughout the year once the park gets going. This will allow us to generate a large amount of revenue and really improve on some of our areas of need. Ask how you can help.

We are looking to get out in the community more. Volunteer days, parades, community events. If you know of things coming, let me or Stephanie Tokarski know.


2020 Sponsorship opportunities will be posted shortly. There will be ways for those who sell to get discounted registration and free swag. A great way to support the program.


We are using Spond as our organizational communications platform. We will continue to post on Facebook and this site, but if you want on the Spond train, email me at [email protected].

We will get through this. We are strong. We are Wardogs. #WD4L

WARDOG NATION REPORT MARCH 2020

Every month I post, mostly free form, what’s going on, what I hear and my opinion on some things regarding youth football. These opinions are my own and not representative of this organization as a whole.

Our Flag Football registration continues. Extremely pleased with our younger age turnout, would like the older kids to be stronger. We have another 2 weeks and we are at about 75% of our goal for registration. If you have not registered yet, you can do so online here or at Mill Creek Elementary on Tuesday and Thursday from 6:30P – 8P. Also, there are grumblings about us starting up Flag and a misunderstanding as to why we are doing it. Two reasons. Main reason, it is a cheap sport that allows our players and coaches of the same age group stay together in the fall and spring. Also, we have to remain competitive. It really is that simple. Other clubs around us started doing it over the last couple of years and it has been used as a means to sway kids towards their programs. Not throwing shade, nothing wrong with it. Just the underbelly of youth sports. But, if you haven’t noticed, we are flush with youth programs. 13 within a 10 mile radius last I checked. While being the biggest isn’t all that important, we would like to stay around. We did not start this to compete with any other Flag only leagues in the area. This is why we play our games on Saturday, not Sunday like they do. They are good at what they do and maybe someday we will do something together.

Our new board has started working. It will be interesting to see what we can get accomplished with a full board. It has been several years. There is always room for more. If you want to help, track me our Phoebe or Terry or someone down. We will get you to the right person.

We are looking into hosting some adult football tournaments. We are looking a both flag and touch. Keep an eye out but thinking maybe May and July for starters. If you have a team interested in either you should get a hold of me.

NESAC Football has given most divisions 5 pounds this year. Always good to get a couple more pounds. Every year we get to the inevitable unlimited football era. I for one will take care of the scales “Office Space” style.

Some of our 13U players checking out some options for next year. Some out of state and some to nationally ranked teams. That was a great football team and these kids will be making noise throughout the area. Truman, Pennsbury, Neshaminy, Egan, Wood, St. Frances. You never know where a Wardog will turn up.

2019 was an interesting year. For the new parents, thanks for hanging in. With the construction and uncertainty with the facility we had to be very fluid this year. The club took a beating financially but we survived. We have a tremendous opportunity to make it back in concessions in 2020 so I hope everyone is ready to get their $40 back.

2020 presents incredible opportunity but a lot of uncertainty. I haven’t been nervous going into a tackle season in quite sometime but I have to be honest, this year will be challenging. I would just like everyone to remember that we are volunteers. We do not have to do this. A lot of us do not have kids or kin in the club anymore. We have our reasons. I will not speak for anyone else. Just take it easy and know that your child’s interests, safety and enjoyment are what matters to us. Believe it. Until next month.

#WD4L

2020 Board of Directors

The 2020 Board of Directors has been elected. Please see the Board Positions document for details on duties and responsibilities

EXECUTIVE BOARD (3 YR TERM) TERM EXPIRES 01/2023
Bill Smith           President  
Phoebe Walker        VP, Operations  
Terry Walker         VP, Athletics  
Carol Adamovic       Treasurer
Destiny Warriner     Executive Secretary

BOARD OF DIRECTORS (2 YR TERM) TERM EXPIRES 2022
LaShanda Bradley     Concessions Director 
Buddy Crawley        Athletic Director  
Noelle LaRocco       Communications Director
Dave Spinelli        Facilities Director 
Stephanie Tokarski   Events Director  

COORDINATORS ( 1 YR TERM) TERM EXPIRES 2021
Darrin McAdams       Co-Football Coordinator 
Tiana Mobley         Concession Manager 
Virgil Mobley        Co-Football Coordinator  
Dontae Wilkerson     Flag Coordinator  

Wardogs Banquet Recap

For the first time in 5 seasons, Wardogs Football had a banquet. Previously we had switched to the bowling parties and then teams having their own gatherings.

I was talking to the parents of the Little Tykes team down in Florida and they indicated how much they would enjoy a banquet. I spoke to some other parents and decided we should have a banquet. When I informed Phoebe Walker of this she sprung into action. Pretty quickly, with the help of Tiana Mobley and our Team Moms, we put together a banquet. Phoebe cooked. My mom, who doubles as our Treasurer cooked. LaShanda Jackson came back from extended vacation and helped out. Tracey Jones came out of retirement and put the apron on as well. Tiana jumped in. The Tokaski’s jumped in before, during and after. The other usual cast of characters did what they do.

So food was great. The DJ sucked but he was free.

I think for the limited time we had and the fact that we did not budget for or plan for a banquet, things went really well.

I went over some topics before team awards.

  • Phoebe was recognized and present with a gift from the organization
  • Talked about our successes on the field. 3 NESAC Championships. 1 Runner Up.
  • Spring Flag Football was talked about
  • Current budget challenges related to lack of concessions in 2019 discussed
  • Board positions and coaching positions cleared
  • Early tackle register and expected 2020 cost increase
  • George Manzo, long time Wardog and current 13U player, has been offered a full scholarship to attend St. Francis Academy in Baltimore MD to play football. St. Francis is currently ranked #2 in the country. George met recruiters that led to this opportunity while down at UYFL National Championships in December.

Teams were presented with their gift bags, rally towels and medals.

The following are the winners of the door prizes

  • Morgan Smith. Free 2020 Spring Flag registration
  • Ruth Wilkerson. Free 2020 Spring Flag registration
  • Lacresha Williams Moore. Free 2020 Spring Flag Registration
  • Dontae Wilkerson. Free 2020 Fall Tackle Registration
  • Jon Hall. Free 2020 Fall Tackle Registration

In the end I think we had a great evening and I thank everyone who helped put it together. The new Executive Board will discuss options and then present them to Wardog Nation for opinion. Thank you.

#WD4L