Note to readers: Make your picks for the 6-0 Challenge at the bottom of the post.

This is an opinion column.

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Auburn football coach Hugh Freeze was off this week, which means he had time to learn a few things from the best team in the state.

Central-Phenix City isn’t too far from Freeze’s office. The high school is in the heart of Auburn country. It’s there on the Alabama-Georgia border where the school’s flag football team is approaching mythical levels of domination.

Ranked No.1 in the nation for most of the season, Central-Phenix City is 15-0 after its victory in the first round of the playoffs. The Red Devils play host to Foley High School in the next round. Kickoff is at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday. I don’t like Foley’s chances. Through 15 games, Central-Phenix City has outscored its opponents 673 to 24.

That’s not a typo.

In its last five games, Central-Phenix City has scored 220 points. Opponents of the Red Devils: 0. In fact, only three teams have managed to score against Central-Phenix City this season, so congrats on the points to Hewitt-Trussville, Auburn High and Harris Co. of Hamilton, Ga.

Mitchell Holt is the Central-Phenix City coach and he treats flag football like regular football. Preparation is key. There are 21 girls on his team and six coaches. The Red Devils have a scout team, too, and, for the first time this season, Central-Phenix City swapped game film with the other teams in its region.

Holt’s advice for Auburn’s Freeze? Get better players.

“Gotta keep recruiting,” Holt said. “Gotta go get the best athletes…All kidding aside, it’s the same concepts, scheme-wise. That’s important, but you got to have the athletes.”

Holt also coaches softball at Central-Phenix City. There’s a lot of crossover between his two teams, but he says soccer players and basketball players also love flag football.

“This is the South,” Holt said. “Football is king.”

It’s not just the South, though. Flag football is one of the fastest growing sports in the country and the world. The NFL backs the sport and flag football will be in the 2028 Los Angeles Summer Olympics. Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts is the sport’s global ambassador for the Los Angeles Games and Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes has expressed interest in playing for Team USA.

On the women’s side, the United States has some work to do after losing to Mexico at the Birmingham World Games back in 2022.

Flag football started out as a club sport for Alabama high schools. This is Holt’s fourth season at Central-Phenix City. For most of his players, flag football is a secondary sport. That’s because flag football isn’t yet a varsity endeavor for NCAA schools. That’s changing, though. In a partnership with the NFL, the America East Conference will feature flag football in 2025.

When will flag football be a varsity sport in the SEC? I wouldn’t be surprised to see it added soon enough. Flag football is inexpensive, and with tackle football going from 85 to 105 scholarships, athletic departments in the SEC will be looking to add women’s sports in order to comply with Title IX.

According to federal law, schools must offer the same number of athletic scholarships to women as men.

Central-Phenix City’s Holt already has a plan for flag football in the SEC. Teams can just play the night before the men. Fans traveling to games on Saturday would be able to attend flag football games, too.

Holt says flag football might already be the most popular girls’ sport in his school. It’s a lot like basketball. Blocking isn’t allowed and the game is wide open. Like tackle football, good quarterbacks are key to a team’s success. At Central-Phenix City, senior quarterback Garritt Griggs has thrown for 65 touchdowns this season. Backup quarterback Mariah Harrison is great, too. Earlier this season, she threw a touchdown pass that Holt says carried 50 yards in the air.

Senior receiver Natalyn Lumpkin leads the Red Devils with 31 total touchdowns, including 30 receiving. Cornerback Colby Cook has 10 interceptions. I don’t want to overstate things, but Central-Phenix City flag football might be the most dominant team in sports history.

“It’s competitive and it allows kids to show off their athleticism in different ways than other sports,” Holt said.

The best part about it, said Holt, is that no one complains about playing time or what position they play. Sports like softball, basketball and soccer are ultra competitive. Travel ball stresses everyone out. With flag football, kids just play for the love of the game.

“I imagine this is what high school sports was like 50 years ago,” Holt said. “It’s pure. No one is chasing scholarships and it’s just kids having fun with their friends.”

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Joseph Goodman is the lead sports columnist for the Alabama Media Group, and author of the book “We Want Bama: A Season of Hope and the Making of Nick Saban’s Ultimate Team.”