In the United States, football has captured the attention of many and has claimed the title of “America’s sport.” From high school football to professional football, the sport has gained the love of viewers and players. It has even started a new tradition in women’s sports.
Powder puff is a high school event where girls play flag football and boys cheer on the sidelines. The tradition started in 1945 at Eastern State Teachers college in Madison, South Dakota, according to sj-r.com. World War II had just ended so there were not many men enrolled in college at the time. The school decided to cancel their homecoming events since there were very few men on campus to play in the homecoming football game. However, the women decided that they would play in place of the boys. There was criticism from the few males on the campus, but the homecoming committee approved the idea. The girls were split into teams based on if they lived in the town, “townies,” or if they lived in the dorms, “dormies.” They played in the game and at halftime, they went on the field to reapply their makeup. This event was the front-page story in the paper with the headline, “The Powderpuff and the Rogue Elevens.” which was the inspiration for naming the game.
Susie Lowry was a freshman at Eastern State Teacher’s College at the time and told “The State Journal-Register” about her experience at the first powder puff game.
“A bunch of us were sitting around after gym class and we thought, if we are going to have homecoming, we’ve got to have a football game,” Lowry said. “So we decided we should have a game of our own.”
Last year, Spartanburg High School decided to carry on the tradition and host its first powder puff game. The class of 2026 took home the first championship and the popularity led to the game becoming an annual event. On March 27, student council held the second annual powder puff game. The freshman class played the juniors, and the sophomores played the seniors for the first round. The championship was between the freshmen and the sophomores, and the class of 2027 pulled off the victory. The freshmen were awarded with Ring Pops for their victory, and they even paid tribute to cheerleaders by taking pictures in a pyramid to celebrate.
Abby Edwards (9) played in powder puff and worked hard to prepare with her team.
“We had a lot of practices and plays set up for powder puff,” Edwards said. “We played to each other’s strengths and worked together as a team to pull off the win.”
With powder puff being at the end of the school year, it is one of the last school events seniors can participate in. Many seniors joined to make memories of their final months of high school.
Brady Swink (12) played in powder puff to make her senior year one she will never forget.
“I participated in powder puff this year because not only did I want to have fun and be active with my friends but to also have the best senior year I can,” Swink said. “As a senior, the year is coming to an end and graduation is just around the corner so doing things such as powder puff really helps shape my year and make memories that will stay with me for life.”
