The College of Saint Benedict to add flag football this spring

The school is partnering with the Minnesota Vikings and other regional colleges and universities to launch the rapidly growing sport.

ST. JOSEPH, Minn., Oct. 21, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Flag football is coming to the College of Saint Benedict.

The school announced Monday (Oct. 20) it is partnering with the Minnesota Vikings to launch the sport, starting with an inaugural team this spring.

The Bennies will join the Midwest College Women's Flag Football League, which begins its second season in 2026. Augsburg, Concordia-Moorhead, Bethel, Gustavus, Northwestern (Minnesota), Augustana (South Dakota) and Wisconsin-Stout all fielded teams in the league's first year. 

"We are thrilled to bring flag football to the College of Saint Benedict," CSB Athletic Director Kelly Anderson Diercks said. "It's one of the fastest growing sports across the country and in Minnesota. With the support of the NFL, and flag's inclusion in the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles, the future is very bright for the growth of the game."

"Expanding opportunities for women is the foundation of the College of Saint Benedict, and how perfect is it when the opportunity brings true and spirited joy," CSB and SJU Chief Operating Officer Kara Kolomitz said. "Flag football at Saint Ben's is an added dose of vibrancy to our historied athletics program and campus."

Since 2022, the Vikings have invested more than $1 million in growing girls' and women's flag football at the high school and college levels in the Midwest.

"The Minnesota Vikings are honored to have the College of Saint Benedict join the growing movement of women's flag football," Vikings Vice President of Social Impact Brett Taber said. "CSB, current competing institutions and (other) schools planning to join soon will bring further awareness to the future of women's football and empower the next generation of athletes to find opportunities to compete and shape this game."

The addition of flag football is just one component of the institution's initiatives to grow enrollment on campus through intercollegiate athletics and club sports. Already, 25 first-year students expressed interest in joining the team at an involvement fair held on campus in early September.

"To have 25 athletes in one class show interest like that is really exciting," said Anderson Diercks, who added the search for a head coach is already underway. "We can already see there is going to be a lot of interest in flag football on this campus."

"I'm so happy to be part of a team of women who are excited to play football and who are ready to work their hardest and bring something new to Saint Ben's," added first-year student Alaina Pundsack, an All-State pick at Mounds View High School during the first season of Minnesota high school flag football last spring and a leader in getting the sport going at CSB.

Of course, interest in football at CSB and SJU is already high. The Saint John's football team is a perennial national power in NCAA Division III and the Johnnies are routinely among the nation's leaders in attendance at that level.

"We're committed to continuing to grow enrollment through athletics and club sports," Anderson Diercks said. "This is another awesome opportunity to bring great young people to these incredible campuses. Saint John's already has a long and storied football history in its own right. Now it's time to start some Bennie football history as well."

Flag football is the nation's fastest-growing emerging high school sport. As of the summer of 2025, 17 states have girls flag football sanctioned at the high school level while 17 other states are in the pilot program stage of growth.

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SOURCE College of Saint Benedict and Saint John’s University