Female football players are an underserved, under recognized, and unappreciated lot. They don’t get paid. They buy their own equipment, even though the sport makes money, and clubs don’t get to share in the profits. Some women are working to change that.
The Texas Elite Spartans are a unique group of women who play in the Women's National Football Conference (WNFC). The conference creates opportunities for women to take part in Football as players and coaches.
The women’s football team was established in October 2017 to represent Texas in the new women’s football league; the WNFC. The team has 29 former National Championship players, 7 former World Champion players, and 13 former All American footballers.
When the team was still newly formed, the Texas Elite Spartans competed successfully against older, more established teams and beat them.
The other teams in the WNFC are in the Western and Southern US with plans to expand North and East.
Gender Equality
The Texas Elite Spartans share the same goal of the WNFC to give women and girls more empowerment through sports. The team contributes towards the goal of equality between the genders in American football. If more women are included as professional athletes, then they will become role models and heroes just like the male professional athletes.
Coach Odessa Jenkins is a coach and a retired professional player whose mission is to get women’s football to be taken as seriously as men’s football. She doubles up as the CEO of the Women’s National Football Conference.
The goal of the organization is to transform professional women’s football into a league that can afford to pay its athletes to play. There are sixteen teams so far in the organization.
Ownership
36-year-old Odessa Jenkins is a part owner of the club as well as the coach. Even though she is a Vice President in charge of Client Services at YourCause, Odessa still found time to carve out a career as a professional football player.
The 3-time world champion first played football in elementary school and Junior High, so it was easy to go back to the sport. Jenkins has represented the US twice playing in the National Team. Both times she got to play in the IFAF international games playoffs. Her leadership skills were recognized when she was chosen to the USA team captain in 2010.
Nicknamed “OJ,” Odessa Jenkins has been coaching women’s professional football ever since she graduated from Cal Poly in Los Angeles. She coached at Cal Poly and led the team to victory at the Women’s National Football Conference. When she was playing, she was a sweetheart of the crowds, and won rookie of the year when she was a rookie.
The Women’s National Football Conference
The Women’s National Football Conference is the first women’s football league to get significant sponsorship. The aim of the organization is to make enough money to save players from having to buy their own gear and even to pay them for their work.
One of the major sponsors the Conference has secured is Adidas. To achieve profitability, Odessa believes that getting a broadcast partner will be crucial.
The Conference was launched as a partnership between Odessa and Bryant Sewall, who was an owner of the Phoenix Prowlers. Their first sponsors were Adidas and Riddell.
Players
The women who play for the Texas Elite Spartans come in from different places in the US. They come from different professions. Brittany Bushman is a Quarterback and a Science teacher. Jessica Gerhart is a doctor and a quarterback. Rachel May is an HVAC specialist and a two time world women’s football champion. Stephanie is a Mississippi law student. Maria Jackson is an Engineer and a Wide Receiver. Amanda Heilmann is a photographer. Shavonne Ford is a grandma and a professional women’s football player. They all love to play football.
The players in the team are Liz Landry, Kash Singleton, Jessica Collins, Caitlin Carter, Olivia Griswold, Stephanie Jackson, Brittany Bushman, Shelby Valdepena, KeshaSmith, Jessica Gerhart, LaGloria Johnson, DeneshaRichardson, Yumi Warner, Jelani Kelly, Arielle Wilks, LaToya Bankhead, Janice Mitchell, Tracie Williams, Tess Sharman, Lakisha Spain, Bruce Jurado, AngellicaGrayson, Fancy Robinson, Leanna Spence, TwannaDegrate, Alexis Lewis, Shandon Holiday, Joos Martin, Carrie Eastwood, Renee Fruean, Lucinda Watkins, Marisa Goddard, Elizabeth Jenkins, Shavonne Ford, UmekiWebb, Rachel May, Takesha Dye, Sarah Clark, LatoriaRandile, Amanda Heilman, Maria Jackson, Hannah Degraffinreed, Lakissta Bowman, Lena Freeman.
Hall of Fame
In 2018, five players from Texas were added into the first Women’s Football Hall of Fame. One of them was a player with the Texas Elite Spartans and another one was a coach and co owner.
These women were Alberta Fitcheard-Brydson of the Dallas Diamonds, Jen Welter a senior VP of Business Development with the WNFC, Olivia Griswold of the Texas Elite Spartans, Odessa Jenkins Texas Elite Spartans Coach, and Angellica Grayson of the Dallas Elite.
History
The USA Football only formed a national women team after some players started pushing for it in 2007. The national women’s team was formed and it represented the country in international meets like the IFAF Women’s World Championships.
The first one was held in Sweden in 2010 and the USA won the trophy. USA won again in Finland, 2013 and a third time in Canada, 2017. The next tournament will be in Finland, 2021.
In 1926, a women’s team was hired to play during half time by an NFL tram. Their role was to entertain the crowd. It was the first time women were playing football even if it was just for kicks. In 1970, Patricia Palinkas became a placekicker holder for her husband who was a place kicker. In 1997, Liz Heastonbecame the first woman to score in a football game. A few women were already playing in college football. The only woman who has ever tried out for the NFL was Lauren Silberman in 2013.
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