“MEMORY” is one of the greatest gifts human beings have in their lifetime. I ask Banner readers to delve into their memory banks and revisit the following article from the December 13, 2023, edition of this paper. That was the year that the Dorchester Elite Eagles made history by becoming the First team from the Boston area to win a National Championship in Pop Warner Competition.

With a youth football program that rose from the dream of the late Harry Wilson, father of Boston Pop Warner Football, the Dorchester Elite Eagles carved out their own legacy by ‘winning it all’ in the top national youth football competition held each year in Orlando, Fla. The Elite Eagles’ title game, a 20-0 victory over the Darby Monarchs from Philadelphia, brought great pride and distinction to this area and was celebrated by many people. Team President ‘Beefy’ Cousins, Coach Terry Hurston, a strong staff of coaches (who volunteer), and a core of highly enthusiastic fans are the key components of the Elite Eagles’ success.

This year’s edition of Elite Eagles returns to the Pop Warner extravaganza with the hope of bringing home a 2nd national title. But looking back, the comments of Cousins and Hurston (at the time) reflected their pride in a 30-year period that culminated in the famed national title. The following are direct quotes from my December 13, 2023, Banner article.

Cousins: We had a lot of talent on our teams. Some guys were knuckleheads but came around to be solid players, thanks to a coaching staff that stressed discipline and teamwork.” Hurston added, “The program helps the players to get their minds right for the rigors of football life. You want young people to know that ‘doing good things’ has its rewards. Our program runs year-round with such events as ‘Football IQ sessions’ and early football clinics that are open to the surrounding communities. Both young men and young women benefit from several aspects of our program.”

Cousins put things in perspective when discussing the ‘bottom line: “It takes a tremendous amount of money to pull this off. We pay out of our own pockets to make a lot of things work. But we need financial help to keep this program going. Coach Hurston and I hope that winning a national championship and the attention it will bring to the state of Massachusetts will increase our visibility and funding.”

Spinning forward to the present day, and the higher prices of travel and lodging, the Elite Eagles will once again attempt to climb to the top of the Pop Warner mountain and plant another national championship on it. Coming off a season that produced a 10-0 record, this current group of Elite Eagles wants to place their names alongside those of the 2023 national championship team. This 2025 team is different from the 2023 national title team, but just as hungry for their “Championship-moment” as the 2023 squad was for theirs.

Suppose this group of young men (players) and women (cheerleaders) reached their lofty goal of a second National Pop Warner Football title in the last three years. In that case, everyone in Dorchester and the surrounding communities of color (Roxbury, Mattapan, Jamaica Plain, etc.) should be quick to their feet to pay honor to the entire organization that has sent players and team members on to the higher ranks of college football and the subsequent opportunities that result from a college education.

So, as the Dorchester Elite Eagles head to this year’s Pop Warner Nationals, there is much more than football games and pompoms for this proud organization. There is a challenge of “meeting expectations” of loyal supporters who want to see another national champion flag hanging over the proud facility. That is a lot to ask of a group of young football players. Some people feel that the pressure to perform is too much for young people. But don’t try telling that to this 2025 Dorchester Elite team.

Their mission is “to inspire and empower young athletes, fostering their personal growth and development through the pursuit of excellence in football and cheerleading.” They know the dream is big and the challenge is daunting. But they also know that the reward is great. Such is the case when you reach for the highest of goals. Good Luck to the Dorchester Elite Eagles.