Flint Fury football team hoping to bring a championship to the city this summer

FLINT, Michigan — With a roster of more than 50 players and a season with more than 10 additional games to play, the Flint Fury football team is looking forward to a winning season.

The team lost its season-opener to the Metro Detroit Raiders in May, but continues practicing 2-3 days per week on their turf working toward a simple but tough goal — bring a championship to Flint. 

Charles Lawler, team owner and head coach of the Fury, has been coaching since 2008. The team was established in 2003.

“It’s (the goal) no less than every year you shoot for a championship,” Lawler said.

Like most semi-professional sports, the Fury players have other life responsibilities to balance while chasing their professional football dream. Many work full-time and have families. The league is funded through various community and nonprofit organizations and other local sponsors, with the goal of giving players a chance to continue developing as athletes and pursue any opportunities that might go with that.

Lawler’s own passion, both for the sport and helping players in life, has helped keep the team going each year.

“The excitement for me is not just on the field,” Lawler said. “The excitement for me is to see these young guys compete and live their lives through this team.”

Previous versions of the Fury were more defensive-oriented, but Lawler believes fans watching the team play this season will be impressed by some of their offensive weapons, including Jermaine Thomas, Cortez Effinger, and Richard Beauguard. Receivers Jerry Weston and Adam Givens also give the team big-play potential.

With players trying to maintain off-the-field commitments and obligations, it can be hard to quickly build chemistry. Givens said he’s hoping that will come as the season goes on.

“Our offense hasn’t been great for the last few seasons because of injuries from the quarterbacks,” Givens said. “Hopefully, we can be better on offense. I want to be more of a factor when it comes to the wide receiver area and I’m just trying to put my team in the best position to win.”

The Flint Fury play their home games at Hamady High School. Their next home game is May 22 against the Michigan Hurricanes. The schedule and more team information is available online.

Tickets are priced at $10 in cash at the door or $8 via Cash App/Venmo. Children 5 and under get free admission.