Olathe North High School launched its first girls flag football team for the fall 2026 season. The Eagles are among more than 50 programs across Kansas competing in the sport's inaugural year under the Kansas State High School Activities Association (KSHSAA), according to KCTV5.

Rilee Irby leads the program as its first head coach. Olathe North athletic director Josh Price announced the hire on X on July 22, calling on the community to welcome Irby and meet the coaching staff at a preseason workout at the school.

The Eagles played their first official game on Sept. 2 against crosstown rival Olathe East at the Olathe District Activity Center Multipurpose Field. Olathe East led 12-0 at halftime, according to the Olathe East Athletics account on X. A final score was not available.

That Sept. 2 contest was part of the first slate of KSHSAA-sanctioned girls flag football games statewide, KCTV5 reported.

KSHSAA's Board of Directors voted 61-1 in April to sanction the sport, making Kansas the 18th state to recognize girls flag football at the high school level. The designation lets schools build official programs, follow standardized rules and compete for state championships.

The Kansas City Chiefs helped push the sport toward sanctioning through their "Let Her Play" campaign, which collected more than 11,000 petition signatures. Chiefs Chairman and CEO Clark Hunt said in an April 23 press release that the vote reflected "a collective effort," as reported by the Johnson County Post.

Olathe East head coach Blake Iles, entering his second year coaching the sport, spoke about the significance of the new season in an Aug. 14 Johnson County Post story.

"For the longest time, football has been a boys-only sport, and we're realizing very quickly that it's not," Iles said.

Flag football makes its Olympic debut at the 2028 Summer Games in Los Angeles.

Olathe North's student newspaper, The Chronicle, profiled the new program on Sept. 15. The team plays with five to seven athletes per side on a 50-yard field in two 20-minute halves. The Lawrence Journal-World reported Sept. 10 that Free State was scheduled to face Olathe North and Olathe South in a doubleheader at the Olathe District Activity Center.

The school has not published the Eagles' full season schedule.