Club Spotlight: Standing On Business

The FFF Club Spotlight series sits down with the coaches and organizers building youth flag football across the country. This week we talked with Kimmalla "Coach Kim" Mitchell, founder of Standing on Business Youth Football in Missouri City, Texas - the first girls flag football organization in South Houston.

A Prayer, a Dream, and Two Weeks to Build a Team

Standing on Business started in November 2023. Coach Kim doesn't dress up the origin story.

"I literally started with a prayer and a dream that God gave me about a girls flag team," she said.

The spark came from the sideline. Her son was playing flag with an organization in Stafford, and she noticed something she didn't know existed. "There was a couple of girls on the team and I was just seeing that there was a girls division. I was like, 'There's a girls division?'"

She asked Coach Evan - "one of the greatest flag football coaches" - if he'd help her put a girls team together. He said yes. Two weeks later they had a roster built from dancers, cheerleaders, track athletes, and a few girls who had played flag or tackle.

It was supposed to be a one-tournament thing. Then the team ran deep into the regional bracket, and nobody wanted to stop. "We're like, 'Well, let's do it again.' And then we're like, 'Let's do it again.' And so then it just kind of evolved from there."

Two and a half years later, Standing on Business has grown from one team to three, with four divisions planned for next season - 10U, 12U, 14U, and their first-ever high school division.

More Than the Field

Plenty of clubs talk about development. Coach Kim has built infrastructure around it.

"We really want to treat every athlete holistically," she said. "We want to make sure what we're doing is making sure that they're not just good humans on the field, but off the field."

That means mental performance coaching through a partnership with Win the Ball Stops. Low-cost SAT and ACT prep for any athlete trying to raise their scores. Information sessions with UT Arlington to show families that girls flag football carries real scholarship opportunities. "We are really trying to make sure that the athletes are good mentally, emotionally, spiritually, all of the above."

It extends beyond sports entirely. Coach Kim works at a community college, and Standing on Business runs an internship program, providing funded internship opportunities for young people in South Houston.

The on-field philosophy follows the same thread: relationships first. "We have such a dynamic and diverse group of athletes that come from all different backgrounds that you can't just coach different girls the same way," she said. Her coaches build rapport, coach individually, and give athletes a voice - while she makes sure the coaches themselves are taken care of. 

Winning Fast in Football Country

The results came quicker than anyone planned. Standing on Business won the Texans regionals after their first year, took second place at Youth Worlds in Orlando - competing against teams from Panama, Hawaii, Canada, and Mexico - and claimed the first inaugural Rated Five Star girls flag series title with their 14U team.

But the wins aren't what Coach Kim leads with. "Getting our name out there is great, but man, the growth of our athletes is even better. Just seeing them mature and learn and just develop."

The harder fight has been off the field. South Houston is boys football, track, and basketball country, and being the first girls flag organization in the area meant convincing families the sport was real. "To articulate that girls flag football is a thing - it's hard for people to wrap their mind around," she said. "But when they get involved, then they understand it."

She's blunt about what needs to happen next in Texas: UIL sanctioning. "I hate that people's mindset goes to that flag football girls are not the athletic girls, or it's kind of a throwaway sport. But no, we have some dogs out there that can really, really, truly play."

Standing on Business backs that up with action - attending the TSU girls game, signing petitions, and putting their athletes in front of the Texans for interviews advocating for sanctioning.

The Off-Season Heresy

In a sport where year-round play is the default, Coach Kim made an unpopular call: a real off-season.

"I know it's like a cuss word in the flag football world because everybody goes year-round," she said, "but I believe in giving our athletes an off-season."

About 98% of her athletes play multiple sports, so the Standing on Business season runs August through February. Tryouts for the new season are coming up, and the club has a big date circled: their first-ever tournament on Sunday, August 23rd, in partnership with the Military Appreciation Bowl - a partnership rooted in Coach Kim's own service as a veteran.

"Have the Right Intentions"

With new clubs popping up everywhere, her advice to anyone starting an organization is simple.

"Have the right intentions for these girls," she said. "I know that it's a fad for some, but it's a lifestyle for a lot of others. We don't want to water down our sport because you want to make a quick buck."

And for those willing to do it right, she's proof of what the platform side of the sport can deliver - Standing on Business has already rostered players who found them through Flag Football Finder.

Find Standing on Business on Flag Football Finder

Families in the South Houston area can connect with Standing on Business through their FFF profile or follow them on Instagram at @standingonbusiness_yf.

Looking for a girls flag football program near you? Browse girls flag football teams across the country, or create a free athlete profile at app.flagfootballfinder.com to get connected.

The FFF Club Spotlight series features conversations with the coaches and organizers building youth flag football programs across the country. Want your club featured? Reach out to us on Instagram.

‍