The Commanders' Week 6 Flag Coach of the Week is Wise's Nick Ferguson. Coach Ferguson is focused on empowering the young women he coaches, helping his players grow as both athletes and students. With more than a decade of experience leading youth flag football with the Southern Maryland Dream Team, he brings both skill and mentorship to his program. The Pumas are already 6-0 on the season, and several of his players have earned multiple collegiate offers to continue their flag football and academic careers at the next level. Coach Ferguson's dedication to developing talent and creating opportunities has made a lasting impact on his team and Prince George's County.
Commanders.com sat down for an exclusive with Coach Ferguson following his Coach of the Week win.
Q: Congratulations on being named Week 6 Flag Coach of the Week. How does it feel?
A: "It's a great recognition. The girls have made it easy for me and my coaching staff. When they're ready to learn and listen and be coachable, the sky's the limit."
Q: What made you want to get involved in girls flag?
A: "I've been a flag and tackle coach for about 20 years. I played flag when I got out of high school, and I wasn't able to do tackle anymore, and I grew to love it then. When I had kids, I coached my kids in it, and they grew to love it. My daughter went from playing with the boys on a travel boys team to getting recruited to be on an all girls team that we didn't even know existed to getting a college scholarship to play flag football at Ottawa University. She's won five national championships, and I couldn't be more proud of what she's done there. She also made Team USA, and I've helped coach and scout for them as well. My daughter is my inspiration for being involved in flag.
At Wise, every week, I set up a call with my girls and a college that is offering flag football at their school. I give them questions that they can ask as a reference. The coach introduces themselves and tells them about the school and program. It is such a motivator for the girls. Out of nine of my seniors, there are six of them that have offers already. We're doing well. I'm proud to say that we had the first girls in PG County that have gotten offers to go to college for girls flag."
Q: Do you have a motto or mantra that anchors you in your work?
A: "I always tell them: 'We will go be great together.' That means me, my coaching staff, them. There is a standard across the board."
Q: Wise has had an incredibly successful first season thus far – how do you help the pieces come together in this inaugural campaign?
A: "When we did tryouts, we had over 70 girls come out for tryouts. It was like 'Wow, this is really cool.' And I don't think any of them really knew about the flag football world. So at that point in time, I wanted to set a standard that it wasn't about winning, it's about hard work on the field and in the classroom. The winning is a testament to how hard these girls work, day in and day out.
At tryouts, there were great athletes who could go pretty far, but there were some that I cut where their grades just weren't up to par. Then I did it off character – I looked at them, their families, how they carried themselves and interacted with their teammates. Before I knew it, I was selecting cheer captains, band captains, dance captains. They were the type of players who were going to hold each other accountable, and that was one thing I loved about it. The team really controls themselves, and again there's a standard, across the board, and they know the standard."
