As the Eagles and 49ers went into halftime of their Wild Card matchup at Lincoln Financial Field, Keira Quinn and her Gwynedd Mercy Academy teammates prepared to take the field for a quick flag football game.
The halftime show was a way to bring attention to the rapidly growing sport, but there was another factor at play.
During the game, Eagles Insider Dave Spadaro conducted interviews on the jumbotron with select players. When it was Quinn’s turn to take the mic, she got the surprise of a lifetime.
Spadaro, in front of a sold-out crowd, told Quinn that she had won the Maxwell Football Club Girls National Flag Football Player of the Year. Quinn, who was nominated by the Eagles, was dubbed the best girls flag football player in the country.
“It was such a great experience because I had no idea what was going on,” Keira said in late January. “They asked to interview me, and I thought it would just be a normal interview. … But then he said, ‘National Maxwell Player of the Year,’ and my mind was blown. To share that with my teammates, it was just amazing.”