FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

General Questions

League” is the North Metro Football League (NMFL) and is comprised of many Associations located throughout North Fulton, East Cobb, Cherokee, Dekalb and Forsyth counties. The NMFL governs general activities, establishes rules and develops schedules for member Associations. The NMFL has a non-affiliated Chairman who oversees the NMFL Board which is comprised of Association representatives.

Association” refers to the different programs participating in the NMFL such as JCYFA, Lassiter, South Forsyth, Chattahoochee, Centennial, Mount Pisgah, Kings Ridge, Sandy Springs and Lambert. Our Association is the Johns Creek Youth Football Association (JCYFA). JCYFA is a non-profit, community-based 501(c)(3) organization which is managed by a Board of Directors. Our charter is to provide youth football and cheerleading for elementary school students located in and near the City of Johns Creek.

Team” is the various flag and tackle teams under the JCYFA association.  We typically have three tackle teams (one at each grade level: 3rd, 4th, 5th) with 16-25 players per team; and 12-15 flag teams with about 7-10 players per team.  Since we are not a “feeder” program it doesn’t matter what school district you are in, you could play for any team.

JCYFA is community-based and allows participants to join from anywhere in/around the area, we are not a “feeder” program.  Feeder Teams are only allowed to register players in their specific school zone. Development of team rosters depends on the total number of players at each grade level. If there is more than one team the NMFL requires an assessment period and a player draft.

Details about each program including fees can be found on the website. Our fees are competitive and are generally in the middle compared to fees charged by other programs. Our fees include uniform allowance, fundraising, league fees, etc. The only extra costs outside registration is purchasing your practice gear and any “spirit funds” your Team Mom may collect for things like spirit days, coach’s gifts and year-end trophies & banquet.

Registration fees cover game uniforms for Tackle (home jersey and away jersey), and Flag (game jersey and shorts); and tackle equipment rental (helmets, shoulder pads & game pants). Fees are also used for coach’s gear, field equipment, insurance, practice & game facilities, game-day supplies, program administration & operations, fundraising, referees, and league fees.

No. JCYFA has tried to get support from the City of Johns Creek and Fulton County but nothing is available. Many other youth programs like Alpharetta, Roswell, Sharon Springs, Sandy Springs get support from their City/County. Associations such as JCYFA are formed and run by volunteers and supported by registration fees, fundraising and sponsors.

We offer FLAG football (grades K-8), TACKLE football (grades 3-5), and CHEERLEADING (grades K-5). The formation of a separate 2nd Grade tackle team is dependent on the League having enough teams for us to play against and on how many second graders sign-up. If either of these doesn’t happen, we will most likely combine our 2nd and 3rd grade teams and play in the 3rd Grade Division.

Yes, there are certain grade, age and weight restrictions for football governed by the League:

Grade: All teams are based on grade levels. Sometimes parents/coaches request a player be allowed to “play-up” to the next grade depending on skill, size, experience. However, most players are placed on grade-level.

Age:  The League has age limits to ensure teams are age-appropriate in addition to grade. This is determined by player’s age as of September 1:
2nd – 7/8 years old
3rd – 8/9 years old
4th – 9/10 years old
5th – 10/11 years old
6th – 11/12 years old

Weight:  The League restricts weight for skill positions. While players can be any weight, if they exceed the grade-level maximum, they are restricted to playing the Line:
2nd/3rd – unlimited with restricted weight of 105 at skill positions
4th – unlimited with restricted weight of 115 at skill positions
5th – unlimited with no restrictions
6th – unlimited with no restrictions

Some Leagues have two skill-based programs, D1 and D2.  JCYFA has had both D1 and D2 teams in the past; and we will consider any coaches/parents who wish to build a D1 team. Otherwise, we will typically have mostly D2 teams in our program.

D1 & Select team rosters are built by tryouts. Players cannot automatically be placed on a D1 team by signing up, they have to be evaluated and selected by the D1 coaching staff.  D1 teams are more advanced/experienced with players usually having 1-4 years of prior tackle experience. The level of play is highly competitive and fast.

D2 teams are competitive but not as intense as D1. D2 teams are not recreational (“rec teams”). Most rec teams have players trying many different positions on offense & defense and usually only play teams within their Association (“in-park”). Our D2 teams are not rec teams as we build out rosters with players who best fit certain offensive and/or defensive positions; the level of play is competitive and teams do not normally play in-park but play a travel schedule against teams throughout the League.  Most D2 players have less experience, usually 0-2 years of prior flag/tackle.

D2 teams are established by draft if there is more than two of the same team per grade level. If a draft is necessary, the team’s coaching staff participates in the draft which is managed/monitored by the JCYFA Board and a representative(s) from the League. The draft occurs following a player evaluation period and rosters are announced after the draft. While coaches select players for specific assignments, they are also aware of special requests from classmates, neighbors and carpools – even though it’s not possible to meet all special requests, we try to accommodate as many as possible. Our main goal is to find a place to play for anyone wishing to play football – we are usually successful in placing most players and very seldom is it necessary to waitlist a player (unless it’s late in the registration process).

Registration typically opens each year in early March. We won’t know how many Tackle Football teams we’ll have until late July.  We anticipate 1-2 tackle teams at each grade.  For Flag Football, we expect to have 10-12 teams. We also expect to have cheerleading teams at most grade levels.

Yes, but since a lot of expenses are incurred early (i.e., equipment purchase, storage, insurance, general operations, field use contracts, league fees, etc) we must adhere to a strict refund policy. Registration Fees are 100% refundable before April 30 and 80% refundable before May 31.  No refunds after May 31.