The goal of our organization is to enhance the lives of young people in Suffield, Granby, East Granby, and Windsor Locks, Connecticut. We achieve this by providing an inclusive football and cheer program that fosters fun and instills important values such as sportsmanship, teamwork, and commitment to hard work. We strive to create a safe and enjoyable sports environment where participants can flourish and develop their skills. GYF is a non-profit 501(c)3 organization of volunteers. We aim to coach and teach all athletes ages 4-14* the fundamentals of football and/or cheerleading through hard work, discipline, respect, teamwork, and the values of how working together can achieve success.
The Bearcats Organization strives to inspire the ideals of sportsmanship and welcomes ALL interested children regardless of experience or ability. Our goals are to teach; instill core values of discipline, respect, teamwork; to grow confidence; and ultimately, to develop athletes who love the sports of football and cheerleading. These goals are executed within a framework that recognizes various constraints relating to participation in a contact sport. As such we are local and organizational members of USA Football and USA Cheer. As competitors in the Nutmeg Youth Football League (NYFL), these constraints include safety and varied player development both physically and by ability level.
The goals of the program are taught by Certified coaches in a competitive environment, consistent with the current NYFL By-laws and with safety as our main priority.
*Age qualifications are determined and bound by the yearly NYFL By-laws. Generally, the age breakdowns are as follows:
- Kindergarten, 1st & 2nd Grades are Flag Football
- 3rd & 4th Grades are C Tackle Football and Cheer (cannot turn 11 before 09/01 of that season with the exception for “older/lighters”).
- 5th & 6th Grads are B Tackle Football and Cheer (cannot turn 13 years old before 09/01 of the present season with the exception for “older/lighters”).
- 7th and 8th Grade are A Tackle Football and Cheer (cannot turn 15 years old before 09/01 of the present season). No 9th graders will be allowed regardless of weight.