Hickory Ridge's Ritter played in flag football at NFL Pro Bowl
Makaila Ritter played in the Flag Football Showcase at the NFL Pro Bowl.
Football season may be over, but one Hickory Ridge athlete recently got a chance to play the game of a lifetime on the biggest stage of her life.
Makaila Ritter is a senior at Hickory Ridge High School. On Feb. 3, as part of the NFL Pro Bowl activities in Santa Clara, California, she was one of 32 players from across the country to play in the NFL High School Girls Flag Football Showcase.
“It was so awesome. The game itself was really fun,” she said about the experience. “Meeting all the girls and learning how they play. It was really nice to experience the different play style and grow with them in a short amount of time.”
Ritter initially found out that she was nominated to play in the game late last year, but had to wait to see if she was officially chosen. When the call came that she’d been picked, she said that she was excited for the opportunity. Her family was thrilled with her honor as well.
“I can’t say we were surprised exactly,” Ritter’s father Bradley said. “I guess the biggest reaction for me was the proud dad moment. Seeing your daughter accomplish such a big thing. She’s worked hard for everything she’s done, so it was very deserving.”
Ritter, who played every position except quarterback for the Ragin’ Bulls this past football season, was the starting center on the NFC All-Star team. She caught two passes, one of which was on the team’s only scoring drive of the game. She said that the bright lights and big stage didn’t intimidate her.
“Going into it, I thought I’d be extremely nervous and uptight, but when I got out there, it really wasn’t as big in my head as I made it. I felt really calm, honestly.”
Those bright lights included a national television audience watching. The game was televised on ESPN, just before the Pro Bowl. While television ratings are hard to determine exactly, the entire Pro Bowl activities were watched by 2 million people. That makes the game easily the biggest audience she has ever played for. For her part, Makaila said being on television was a good experience.
Makaila Ritter (12) is shown on the sidelines during the game broadcast.
“It was really cool. After the game everybody was texting me saying, ‘I saw you on ESPN, that’s so cool.’ It’s really nice to be able to be on there.”
Although the game was the main focus of her West Coast trip, Makaila said there was plenty of time to do other things. Mini-golf and team dinners were two of the activities that she’ll remember, but she said her favorite memory was the outing that the team took in San Francisco.
“We had a boat tour, so we got to the Golden Gate Bridge and around that, and we went to Alcatraz at sunset, and it was so beautiful. It was so surreal.”
The game was the culmination of a high school football career that was somewhat unexpected. Growing up, Makaila played soccer and basketball. She’s a starter on Hickory Ridge’s conference champion basketball team this season. When she was 13, she gave up soccer to concentrate on basketball. However, several years ago, when Hickory Ridge started its flag football program, the opportunity to play high school football came up. Her mother was hesitant at first.
“When she wanted to play flag football, I told her no a couple of years ago,” Melony Ritter said about her daughter’s wishes.
“I was nervous. I didn’t want her to get hurt, but she went for it. I went to her first game and was like, this is awesome. So, she won that battle between me and her.”
Makaila did win the battle, and had a football career that ended with a national honor and a memory of a lifetime ... or did her career really end? Recently, several area colleges have announced that they will start fielding varsity flag football teams. Among area schools, Wingate, Mars Hill, Lees-McRae and Barber-Scotia all plan to field teams this coming spring, with more schools on the way in future years. Makaila says that if the opportunity presents itself, she would be very interested in playing at the next level.
Makaila Ritter is shown here during a Hickory Ridge basketball game earlier this season.
“It’s becoming such a big sport, and I want to be involved in that and help with the growth of the sport because I think it’s really important not only for my age group of people but also the younger age group of people.”
