Illinois high school girls flag football seniors Aribella Spandiary (Maine South) and Nina Lloyd (Whitney Young) were selected to represent the NFC at the second annual NFL Flag Girls High School Showcase at the 2025 Pro Bowl Games this week. Spandiary and Lloyd check in from San Francisco to discuss their favorite memories from the week, meeting Kevin Byard III and Nahshon Wright and much more.
Hey Bears fans,
It's Aribella Spandiary and Nina Lloyd checking in from the Pro Bowl Games, where we just competed in the NFL Flag Girls High School Showcase to represent the NFC, the Bears and all of Illinois girls flag football.
The game itself was so much fun and even thought the AFC won 7-6, it was so cool playing together for the first time. We're used to being competitors, and we even faced off in the State Finals this year, but to be on the same team and play on defense together was so exciting. Honestly, one of the best parts about this experience was being roommates and getting to know each other off the football field. Now we're friends, which is super cool.
We kept saying to each other that this entire experience has been surreal. Not many people can say they had the opportunity to play at the Pro Bowl or be flown out to San Francisco by the NFL to play flag football.
It's really been a once-in-a-lifetime experience, so shout out to Gustavo Silva, the Bears, all of our coaches and teammates and Maine South and Whitney Young for helping us be here.
And then, for us to be on TV today, for the game to be broadcast on ESPN, that's insane. You don't really expect a sport like girls flag football to be on national television. Sure, it's normal for basketball or softball, but not flag. It was only a few years ago that we were able to start playing in high school. The sport has just grown so fast.
We had all of our friends and family sending us pictures of the game and that support means so much. It's incredible we had that kind of spotlight here.
Another really cool part about being here was meeting a couple Bears players who are also playing in the Pro Bowl.
After practice Monday we spent a few minutes talking to Kevin Byard and Nahshon Wright. We were literally shaking taking pictures with them because we look up to them so much. Obviously they're normal people, but they don't have the same everyday life as we do and may not grasp how much people like us genuinely look up to them.
They were so nice and we got to take some pictures with them, so that was just an awesome experience.
Aside from practice and the game, the NFL also set up a couple fun activities for us to do while we were here. The first night we went mini-golfing and played some arcade games, and then Monday night, we did a boat cruise around Alcatraz. We went right at sunset so the view was amazing. But being on the boat once it got dark was kind of scary. We swear the boat was rocking and tilting, but we made it back to land safely.
Our favorite memory from the whole trip was the free time we had at the pier after the cruise. We hung out with some of the AFC girls and got to know them more. They were such a fun group and we had the best time walking around and exploring Fisherman's Wharf. We were literally laughing so hard our stomachs hurt.
These last few days were truly unforgettable. From playing on the same field as NFL stars to making a bunch of new friends, we're so grateful for the experience and for the NFL. We appreciate everyone's support back in Chicago, too!
Bear Down!
- Aribella and Nina
