Team Mama Idea: Prepping for Home Games

Yesterday was our home opener! And we WON!!! I love home games. More fans, no long drives across town, and all of the fun preparation that goes into it. Here's what I'm sure to do for our team before all home games:

• Make a banner. The boys absolutely love running through them. They're super easy and fun to make... especially when you have the extra hands. I always send out an email asking for volunteers, siblings are great help as well! All you need is banner paper (any light color will do) and art supplies. I usually print the slogan out. Some of my favorites are "One Team, One Dream" and "Teamwork Makes The Dream Work". Once the slogan is glued on, I like to handwrite each players name and jersey number around it. That's it! Oh yeah, I do perforate it in the middle a little bit...these are 80 and 90 pounders after all. We don't want them bouncing off the banner, ha!

• Host a post-practice tailgate. We like to "tailgate" following the final practice before our home games. It's a great way to bring the team together in a non-football setting. It also helps parents not have to worry about making/picking up dinner. We set up in whatever space we can find off of the field. Some of my favorite tailgate foods are pizza, hot dogs (did you know they could be cooked in the crockpot??), and chili. Of course these are simply the main dishes- I also send out a sign up sheet via SignUp Genius asking for volunteers for fruit, dessert, chips, drinks, and paper products. The players have a blast and so do the parents...especially when *mama drinks* are included. Click HERE for more tailgate tips!

• Prearrange for volunteers. Football is not a one man sport. It takes a village. Three people need to work the chains, someone needs to record the game, someone needs to bring halftime fruit, and someone needs to bring post-game snacks and drinks. This never changes. The more hands involved, the better. I send out an email at the beginning of the week, and have never not had enough volunteers.

• Send out a reminder email. If you use a type of team management site such as TeamSnap or Shutterfly, it will automatically be sent for you. They should include the date, location, time to arrive, uniform to be worn, and a  list of volunteers (fulfilled/needed). If you are using a touchdown jar, include a line reminding them to bring bills and loose change. Not sure what a touchdown jar is, read my blog post on it: Touchdown Jar! Who, What, Where, When, Why?

• Get a good night's rest. This one is critical. My hubby and I are always sure to get our boys to bed at a decent hour. Just like milk, rest does a body good.

What do you do to prep for home games? I'd love to hear about it!

Team Mama Idea: Jersey Number Cheat Sheet

Ever seen a kid make a heck of a tackle, only to figure out that you have absolutely no idea what kid it was?!? Never fear, the Jersey Number Cheat Sheet is here! I guess that's what it's called. I could be totally wrong. Oh well! Basically, it is a sheet listing all players and their corresponding jersey numbers. These are super helpful, especially when the players have different numbers for practices and games.


You can make them as basic or as fancy as you'd like. I print mine on card stock and then laminate them to make them as sturdy as possible. It's a long season!

Obviously, the emojis are not really a part of the cheat sheet. But I'm sure you already knew that! ;-)

Team Mama Idea: Donuts for Shutouts!

What feels even better than winning? How about shutting a team out AKA skunking them AKA not letting them score AKA giving them a DONUT! It's totally a big deal. So when our boys do just that, we reward them with donuts! And let me tell you, it definitely makes them play harder. I mean, what kid doesn't like donuts?


It doesn't all have to fall on the you or the coach, especially if you're doing it often. You can (and should!) ask for volunteers. We bring donuts to the first practice following the big game. To make it easier, I try and get the same type (either all sprinkles, all glazed, etc.)- that way "Little Bobby" isn't comparing his donut to "Little Tommy's".  Ain't nobody got time for that!

Don't forget extras for the coaches and little siblings! After all, they're a part of the team as well, right?




*** UPDATE: Our team was featured on a local donut shop's Instagram page! Go Admirals!!! ***

Team Mama Idea: Touchdown Jar!

For those of you unfamiliar with the Touchdown Jar, I'm here to fill you in!


You know how you're always stuck scrambling around at the end of the season for money to cover the costs of the team party, players gifts, etc.? Well, say goodbye to that! Last season, we raised $391.46 this way! No need to beg people for money. All thanks to "the jar"!


Here's what it's all about:

• Who- Touchdown Jar

• What- A jar used to collect money for end of season festivities, or anything else your team desires (shirts, trophies, even coaches gifts). It doesn't even have to be a jar, to be honest. I currently use a fantasy football bank that I was previously gifted from an awesome group of parents. Up until then I was using a shipping tube from Michaels that I painted and jazzed up a bit with a helmet decal. I've even seen people use coffee cans. In fact, they work great because of the noise they make when coins are added!

• Where- Games, scrimmages- both home and away.

• When- Any time your team scores a touchdown, you pass the jar around. You can assign a single person to do it, take turns, or simply pass it from fan to fan. Little siblings are great for the job! Who can say no to a sweet, smiling, cute little kid? I send out weekly emails (usually the day after each game) letting the team know how much we collected that game and what it brings our grand total to.

• Why- Because it's soooo much easier than trying to collect money at the end of the season. It doesn't feel like the typical money collection. Fans (parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, friends) are super excited because their team just scored, which makes them more generous. And quite frankly because it works, that's why. As previously mentioned, we raised $391.46 last year... $391.46! We used it to cover our laser tag party and even purchased personalized shirts for our team. Think about it? Would you have received that type of major money simply by sending out an email asking for it? Yeah, I didn't think so either.

Yep, that is a $20 bill in there!


What are you waiting for? Make your jar and go score some touchdowns!!!





*** Touchdown Jar totals to date:


2015- $391.46
2016 (No. 1's team)- $570.60, (No. 2's team)- $224.24
2017- $542.59








*** Sports Mama Tip: I know it says touchdown jar, but you could totally tailor it to fit your sport (i.e. Goal Jar for soccer, 3-Point Jar for basketball, Home Run Jar for baseball- you get the gist).

How cute is this?!? Kristy O., one of the awesome Sports Mamas in our Facebook Group made it!


Here's another one courtesy of Jaque L. So creative!

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