Las Vegas Apex Predators: Out to Dominate Youth Flag Football 2020

Las Vegas Apex Predators Youth Flag Football – Out To Dominate

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The Apex Predators are a youth flag football club in the Las Vegas area ranking Top 8 in the country.

This elite travel club promotes young athletes from 6U to 14U to compete in the NYS HFFL and 200% Sports Leagues. The program has won National Championships, 16 Tournaments, and 20 League Titles since the club originated in 2016.

Omar Smith, the founder of Apex Predators speaks about the success of this program, “We went to National Champions this past year, went two and two. We could have done better, it’s a great experience that the NFL flag football held.

They gave the parents and kids free rooming and provided food. The location was at the Disney Coronado Springs Resort. The atmosphere was nice, the kids had the opportunity to meet the pros and receive signed autographs. It was located at the Pro Bowl, Wide World of Sports Complex.”

Omar allowed me to sit in on one of their Friday night practices…

The Apex Predators have a big tournament in April during the NFL Draft weekend called the NFL Flag Regional Tournament. Smith takes pride in his players’ safety by providing uniforms, helmets, and mouthpieces. He also gives children and parents the opportunity to meet the team and join their practices, free of charge, for the first four months before they make a commitment.

“We strive to get to NFL Flag Nationals. That’s the big tournament that you want to go to,” states, Coach Smith. “They have regional qualifiers all over the country. The Raiders had one out here this past year, last year and we won it. This year we lost to the official champions, our rivals from Arizona. We got back to National’s for the third year in the row by beating one of the top programs in the Miami RedZone.”

Smith, who has a son of his own that plays on the team, discusses the importance of good grades. “The players are required to receive satisfactory grades or they won’t be able to play,” states Smith. Volunteer parent Adele McClendon states, “I want to say about, 80% of these kids have a 3.7 GPA or higher. If they don’t have good grades, they can bring their homework to practice and we have parents here that are willing to help them.”

Smith explains his passion for the sport and his dedication to building the program.

“That’s what I love about flag… I don’t believe in all of these hits at a young age,” states Smith. “Don’t get me wrong, I love tackle football. We will be starting a tackle program this fall. They need to participate in flag football first and learn the basics. I’m old school, I don’t believe that anything should be given to you. I believe in competitiveness.”

“I started my own team called the Packers, which is my favorite NFL team. We had a great first season and the parents liked it. There was a soft tournament coming to town, flag football. I didn’t know how big it was, so at the end of the season, I decided to start a travel team. I’ve always liked the Apex Predators theme. I watch a lot of National Geographic. We came up with the symbol and it took off from there. It has grown at a rapid rate and now we are one of the top programs in the country.”

Volunteer parent Adele McClendon gives insight on her children’s journey with the Apex Predators.

“The Apex Predators, before we joined we knew they were an awesome team, said McClendon. You already know when you hear the name Apex Predators. My oldest son got invited to one of the practices and that’s how he got introduced to this team. When he first started he wasn’t that good. He couldn’t catch at all, but he was so determined to play on this team and now he is awesome.

We started coming to practice an hour early and his brother who is a quarterback would practice with him. That’s where the transition was made and now he has the determination to be better. When you practice with good kids that want to get better, you’re going to play better.”

The Apex Predators are excited to travel year-round and prepare for each tournament by holding practices twice a week. The players prepare for their next tournament in Irvine California on Valentine’s Day weekend.