Pictured Will Ward is in black jersey, Shawn Albritton is in baby blue Crew jersey. The team photo is the Chicago Flames. Photos by Ross Forman
By Ross Forman
Seeing that this is the home of Da Bears, and the largest gay flag football contingent in the country, it's only fitting that Chicago is sending two teams to the 5th annual Gay Super Bowl, Oct. 7-9 in San Diego, officially known as GayBowl V.
No doubt Da Coach would be proud.
Will Ward, 30, an Andersonville resident, coaches and quarterbacks the Chicago Flames, participating in their fourth Super Bowl—with two runner-up trophies and a third-place finish last year. The Flames feature a 17-man roster for the annual affair, which attracts teams from across the country for intense battles on the 80-yard field. A team from Washington, D.C. is the defending champion, while a bunch from Boston knocked the Flames out of the title chase last year.
Shawn Albritton, 30, a Rogers Park resident who works in market research, is the captain of the Crew Crushers, making their Super Bowl debut. Albritton attended the Super Bowl last year in Atlanta as a referee. This time, though, he'll be playing linebacker and perhaps wide receiver, clearly a flashback to his football-playing days in the early-1990s at East Bay High School in Tampa, Fla.
'We hope to win it all,' said Ward, a wide receiver and cornerback at Klien High School ( Spring, Texas ) in the early-1990s. 'We've had a good core group of guys for the last four years. There are a lot of strong personalities on our team, but we have good camaraderie, which really helps. We go to have fun, but definitely want to win. There really is some intense competition, though. Many cities bring their best players, even if they are not teammates throughout the regular-season. Many players have played high school or some college football.
'On a 1-to-10 scale, I'd rank the Super Bowl competition-level an 8, whereas it's at about a 3 during our regular-season in comparison.'
Ward, who plays for Charlie's Ale House during the regular-season, added: 'I'm glad there are two Chicago teams going to the Super Bowl. Now the city has twice as many chances of bringing back the title.'
But no bet has been placed between the locals … at least not yet, Ward said, smiling.
'I'm very proud of our city. Other than the Super Bowl host city, San Diego, we're the only other city that is sending two teams,' said Albritton, who serves as the commissioner for Chicago's traditional Saturdays-in-the-fall league, played at Warren Park. Chicago has 17 teams playing this year, up one from 2004, with three divisions: competitive ( 2 teams ) , intermediate ( six ) and recreation ( nine ) . There are about 400 participating players this year.
In the Super Bowl's seeding round, the Flames face San Diego, Birmingham ( Ala. ) and the team from Los Angeles that won the first two Super Bowls. The Crushers play Washington, D.C., Salt Lake City and Dallas.
The top eight teams move into a tiered-playoff, each with a shot at the crown.
'When I moved to Texas from the Philippines at age 15, I immediately fell in love with the game,' said Ward, who recently graduated from Northeastern University ( biology degree ) and now works as a program advisor. 'I think everyone out here just loves the game, especially those going to the Super Bowl.'
Such as Scott Parachek, who plays free safety and wide receiver for the Flames. And Chris Cleary, who plays linebacker and safety, and serves as the Flames' defensive captain. The team's top receivers are Glen Rexing, Ryan Reynolds and Kevin Haight. Jonathan Contreras is one of the Flames' top defenders.
The Crushers' top players include James Platt and Garrett Taliaferro.
'I'm really excited to go,' Albritton said. 'I would compare the Gay Super Bowl to the Gay World Series, but I think this event is more special because it's smaller, more intimate, and with more camaraderie among all of the players.
'On the field, there really is a lot of athleticism. The talent level is incredible. There's no difference between the talent level that I saw last year and what I saw in high school. The quarterbacks at the Super Bowl have rifles for an arm; the plays are more complex; and there's a lot of strategy, which you don't see during our regular-season games. Plus, it's very physical; no one is worried about getting injured.'
Marcia Hill, who serves as the commissioner for Chicago women's football league, will be in San Diego as a referee.
The 2006 GayBowl will be held in conjunction with the Gay Games and the 2007 event tentatively is slated for New York City.
