Biography
of Bill Casagrande
President & Founder of the Mid-Atlantic
Unlimited Youth Football League
Bill’s love of the
game of football started in his Sophomore year at Parkville High School,
where he played offensive & defensive tackle for the Knights. After
high school in 1974, Bill went on to play at Harford Community College,
before transferring and playing at Boston University.
A number of years
later, Bill had two sons signing up for 6-8yr. old rec football in Harford
County. What initially started as a "dad helping out at practice"
soon became a labor of love – he coached for a couple of years at Bel
Air, then went on to coach at Fallston. While at Fallston , he would
go on to become President of Fallston Football & Cheerleading. Bill
was also involved with the Harford/Baltimore County Youth Football League
("HB Football"), eventually being voted in as a Vice President.
Although no longer
with the Fallston Program, Bill remained very active as an officer of
HB Football, giving him wide-range perspective on youth football in
general. As one of his own sons battled staying within weight limitations
while at Fallston – despite the fact that he was playing in an older
age group that gave him extra weight allowance – Bill recalled how he
was never able to play football until his Sophomore year in high school
because he, too, was big for his age. Bill soon begun wondering how
many kids out there were not playing rec football because of weight
limitations.
In 1995, Bill’s
dream of having a program specifically for bigger kids was realized
and the Jr/Sr Program was begun. Although the first year was tough and
Bill wore many hats -- everything from coach to running the overall
program to scheduling games to finding fields for practice & games
to buying equipment – soon, the first season was history and the roots
of this innovative program were sewn. The 35 players on the inaugural
team only scored ONE TIME all season – but you would have thought these
players just won the Super Bowl!
The 1996 season
brought twice the number of kids for two Jr/Sr teams. Although it was
still tough finding games, these kids wanted desperately to play football.
Games were scheduled with local private school teams – most of the time
the Jr/Sr 7th & 8th graders were playing against
Fresh/Soph teams. It was not a perfect match, by any terms, but the
perseverance of Bill’s team in particular led them to a 10/1 season
– despite the fact that they were playing older, more experienced players.
The 1997 season
led to yet another team – with approximately 75 kids playing on 3 teams
– 75 kids that would not have been able to play at all, if it were not
for the Jr/Sr Program. That same year practices and games were held
at the Gilman School. The pervious two seasons practices were held on
a softball field and no lines at Double Rock Park.
In the 1998 season,
one of the areas in HB Football (Bel Air) fielded a team. Bill started
a pre-season camp that year to help players prepare for football.
In 1999, with expansion
of the unlimited weight teams a top priority, Bill stepped down from
his position as Vice-President with HB Football to enable him to devote
his energies to unlimited weight football for middle school players.
The 2nd pre-season camp was held at Towson University with
double the number of participants as the previous year. More coaches
were asking to help at the camp and the word was getting out – even
during the off-season. With the obvious expansion of teams for the coming
season on the threshold, Bill started the Mid-Atlantic Unlimited Youth
Football Association ("MUYFA") to oversee the unlimited teams.
With the start of
the 1999 regular season, expansion efforts came to fruition with eight
unlimited weight football teams in the MUYFA: two Jr/Sr teams -- the
Ravens and the Bulls, two HB Football areas fielded a team -- Bel Air
Redskins and Hampstead Ravens, two Anne Arundel County programs fielded
teams – Anne Arundel Rebels and Cape St Claire Cougars, and two Eastern
Shore schools fielded teams – Easton Warriors and Cambridge Vikings.
With eight teams, two divisions were created. Most importantly -- for
the first time since the start of unlimited weight football in the area,
the players would be playing their TRUE peers – other big, middle-school-age
players.
With the 1999 season,
there was great press coverage (complete with a story on page 1 of the
Baltimore Sun’s Sports page written by Mr. Pat O’Malley), great fan
support and many high school coaches coming out to watch the games.
Despite the many
successes of the 1999 season – the best was yet to be. The first MUYFA
Championship Games held at Archbishop Spalding High School in Severn,
MD on November 6, 1999 – 6 teams of big 7th & 8th
graders having a great day — with the two best teams (the 10-1 Jr/Sr
Ravens and the 11-0 Anne Arundel Rebels) playing at 3:00 pm. As droves
of fans came out that day to watch this hard-hitting competitive game
– even Mother Nature cooperated and moved rain clouds out of the area.
An incredible game
was played with the final score -- Rebels 46, Ravens 28-- with the game
as close as 4 points right into the fourth quarter. Coach Bill’s Ravens
did not come out victorious that evening, BUT – you would have NEVER
known it. As Coach Bill saw the 6 teams play that day – 150 kids that
would HAVE NEVER played football in the 1999 season – he certainly felt
like a winner. The Inaugural MUYFA Championships was "icing on
the cake" of five years of hard work and perseverence. As of today
over 300 high school players have received football coaching & experience
from this great program prior to going to the high school level.
