The Buffalo Bills have announced the Week 6 High School Girls Flag Football Coaches of the Week.
Aimed at highlighting varsity girls' flag football coaches' efforts on and off the field, coaches from the Buffalo, Rochester, and Syracuse regions will be honored over seven weeks and receive $1,000 for their teams. Each region's Coach of the Week will be eligible to be selected for the Coach of the Year.
Buffalo Region (Section VI) Coach of the Week
Williamsville East head coach Mike Torrillo was named the Buffalo region Coach of the Week for the week ending Sunday, May 17. Also, the athletic director at Williamsville East, Torrillo has coached girls flag football for the Flames. He is assisted on his staff by his son, Joseph.
"Our philosophy is to get better every day," said Torrillo. "If we practice and prepare well, good things will happen."
The Flames have recorded a .500-or-record and notched a playoff win each of the program's four seasons. Williamsville East has raced to an 11-4 record in 2026, including wins last week over Williamsville North, 19-18, and Amherst, 25-21.
In addition to on-the-field success, Flames' flag football athletes participate in a reading day at a local elementary school.
Rochester Region (Section V) Coach of the Week
Churchville-Chili head coach Dan Corrado was named the Rochester region Coach of the Week for the week ending Sunday, May 17.
Corrado has served as varsity girls flag football coach for the Saints since the program's inception three years ago. He has also served as a varsity tackle football coach for 19 seasons, including 14 at Verona (NJ) High School and the past five as the offensive coordinator at Churchville-Chili.
"Athletics has always been a major part of my life," said Corrado. "I was fortunate to have incredible coaches and role models in my life growing up, which has fostered my current motivation as a teacher and coach to do my best to pay it forward. I love the concept of being a part of a team and working with a group to make each other better. "
After winning one game in the program's first season and three wins last season, the Saints are 11-3 in 2026 and finished the regular season seeded fourth out of 16 teams in Section V Class B. The Saints opened the Section V playoffs with wins over Greece Olympia/Odyssey, 27-6, and Spencerport, 20-6, and will face top-seeded Webster Thomas on May 21. Corrado was quick to mention co-coach Libby Johnson, whom he credits for growing the game in the greater Rochester area as well.
"Our team motto this year has been 'Next,' added Corrado. "Flag football is a fast-moving game, but the most important thing is what happens next. This could be the next rep in practice, the next play, or the next game. We want our girls to play fast, trust their instincts, and not be afraid to make mistakes."
Churchville-Chili girls flag football athletes ran a food drive at home games for the C-C Community Food Pantry and ran a youth camp for young flag football players in the area.
Syracuse Region (Section III) Coach of the Week
OnTECH Charter head coach Heaven Lewis was named the Syracuse region Coach of the Week for the week ending Sunday, May 17.
Lewis, in her second season as head coach, said, "While our program is still developing, our focus has never been solely on wins and losses; it has been about building confident young women, developing leadership, creating opportunities, and teaching our players what it means to be true student-athletes.
"Over the last two years, I have worked alongside my assistant coach, Nashawn Stenson, to grow the program and create a supportive, competitive, and family-oriented team culture," added Lewis, who is also an assistant coach for the indoor track team. "We have encouraged players to step into new roles, challenge themselves, and believe in what they are capable of both on and off the field. I could not have done it without him."
OnTECH fell, 12-0, to Sherburne-Earlville in the 2025-26 Section III Class C sectional quarterfinals.
OnTECH flag football athletes take pride in supporting the community both on and off the field. Members of the team regularly volunteer and participate in school-wide and community events including: TECHsgiving, Holiday Shoppe events, open houses, community resource events, and school spirit and engagement activities.
2026 COTW
Week 1: Chris Edwards (Pioneer), Eric Thurley (Webster Thomas), Brad Keysor (ESM)
Week 2: Nick Bertrando (Fredonia), Mike Wilkinson (Hornell), Jeff Petties (Syracuse East)
Week 3: Henry Carney (Grand Island), David Marean (Hilton), Tom Rose (Oneida)
Week 4: Jeff Weiss (Orchard Park), Chris Urban (Aquinas), Tim Moore (Westmoreland)
Week 5: Dan Hannon (Kenmore), Dennis Thomas (Padilla), Dan Scicchitano (Central Square)
Week 6: Mike Torrillo (Williamsville East), Dan Corrado (Churchville-Chile), Heaven Lewis (OnTECH Charter),
Week 7: May 18th through May 24th - Announced on May 26th
Coaches of the Year: Week of June 8th - Post NYS Flag Football Championships
The growth of girls flag football has been remarkable. In 2022, 20 Western New York teams featured flag football. Currently, 255 public schools across New York State are participating in girls flag football, with 91 from WNY (Sections VI, V, and III, which is the Syracuse area).
High school girls flag football launched in the Spring of 2022 and became a New York State-sanctioned sport in 2023. In 2024, the first-ever NYSPHSAA State Championship Season for flag football was held. Since then, three of the five state champions have been from Western New York.
The Bills are currently in their second year of a three-year pilot initiative supporting Modified (Middle School) Girls Flag Football with the Bills Foundation and the Ralph C. Wilson Jr. Foundation. Last year, 21 schools received grant funding and equipment as a part of this program; this year, 32 schools received grant and equipment support.
At the 2026 NCAA Convention, flag football was added to the NCAA Emerging Sports for Women program. This means it is a step closer to becoming a sanctioned sport – one officially recognized, governed, and regulated by the NCAA - which will provide the opportunity to play in college to thousands of student-athletes.
This explosion of participation and passion for girls' and women's flag football also coincides with the 2028 Olympics, which will include women's flag for the first time.
