History of the Pigskin Tournament.
Has your tournament ever been cancelled?
How is the Pigskin Tournament different from other Tournaments?
Why isn't the Pigskin Tournament held at high school stadiums?
Who hosts the Pigskin Tournament?
What are the divisions for the Football Tournament?
When do we have to arrive in Las Vegas?
When do we play our games?
What is the cost to attend the tournament?
Why is the Pigskin Tournament less in cost than other tournaments?
What is the cost of the Hotel Accommodations?
Do I have to stay at one of your preferred hotels?
What are the important dates I need to know?
What are the tournament rules?
How do I get started registering?
What is the X-men rule?
I have a question that wasn't answered here.
History of the Pigskin Tournament
In 2000, knowledgeable football coaches and businessmen from Las Vegas began a lengthy process of developing a tournament which was fair, fun and cost effective for teams to participate in. We worked with the Presidents of several large (10,000 + players) Leagues around the country who were also unhappy with the quality and competition levels found at other tournaments, to avoid mistakes which result in controversy and disappointment to the players, coaches and parents. Some tournaments require you to provide "win/loss" projections for your team for "strength ranking". As teams have only played half of their season games by the registration deadline, coaches would "guess" at their final season standings. This resulted in teams who projected winning seasons being "moved up" in tournament competition against older/heavier teams, which resulted in many injuries to our players, or "blow out" scores if the coach projected a .500 season and ended up with a much stronger, or weaker, team than anticipated. This is the reason the Pigskin Tournament does not match teams using a meaningless "strength ranking" system. We worked for over 2 years on developing the Pigskin Tournament BEFORE the inaugural season.
In 2002, the Pigskin Tournament was born. We intentionally limited our inaugural season to 40 teams to ensure the highest quality event possible was produced. And we succeeded. During our 2003 Tournament, we doubled in size to 80 teams as the word of the fun, competition and integrity of our tournament spread among other leagues. Due to the high interest in our tournament, we unfortunately had to reject 14 team's applications (some of them from our local league) as we had reached our maximum capacity for the year.
In 2008, again due to growing interest in our tournament, we have added 2 additional fields so that we may now accommodate up to 128 teams. We expect to fill all available divisions by September 30th, 2008, so we strongly encourage early registration if a team wants a guaranteed spot in the tournament.
Has Your Tournament Ever Been Cancelled?
Absolutely NOT! Other tournaments would like you to believe that theirs is the most reliable, best run tournament in the country. This, simply stated, is only their opinion. They attempt to use "scare tactics" to discourage teams from attending tournaments other than their own. As a coach or parent, ask yourself, Why? Is it because of declining registrations? If registrations are declining, again, ask yourself, Why? The Pigskin Tournament registrations continue to increase year to year.
We are sure that some tournaments have failed in the past, resulting in disappointment for the participants and monetary losses to teams, but be assured, the Pigskin Tournament was not one of them.
How is the Pigskin Tournament different from other Tournaments?
The first goal of the Pigskin Tournament is to provide a competitive football tournament, where all participants have a fun and lasting memory.
Our second goal was to save YOUR team money while providing a one of a kind experience. We have accomplish this by contracting and affiliating with several of Las Vegas' finest resort hotels to provide the best room accommodations at the absolutely lowest rates possible due to volume. Room accommodations are for one to four to a room. The hotels may have minimal additional charges if there are more than 4 occupants per room.There is no additional charge for parents or spectators to attend ANY of the football games while participating in the tournament. This can save your family substantially over other competitions.
As our tournament is produced locally in Las Vegas, we have many more local connections to make your stay more enjoyable. As an example, during the 2003 tournament, we had 10 teams, who with very short notice, requested banquet facilities to cater a Thanksgiving dinner for all players, cheerleaders, coaches and parents. Working with our tournament staff, and the local connections we have with the hotels, we were able to accommodate these team's requests. Special attention to teams such as this may not have been possible by out of state tournaments.
Most games will be played at ONE place, the City of Las Vegas' "All American Park", instead of having to drive all over the Las Vegas Valley. We have 5 lighted fields and 2 unlighted fields. Our fields are located close to the freeway for easy access and only 5 miles west of "The Strip"
Finally, and most importantly...
is the reward awaiting all football players and cheerleader participants. All football players in the top 3 teams in their respective brackets will receive a custom made medallion commemorating the event. Gold in color for the Champions, Silver in color for the 1st runners up and Bronze in color for the 2nd runners up. All Coaches of the winning teams will receive a very impressive trophy to acknowledge the accomplishment of the tournament.
Why isn't the Pigskin Tournament held at high school stadiums?
There are several reasons that the Pigskin Tournament does not host our event in high school stadiums. If you have ever played on high school fields at the end of the season, you know how barren and hard the fields have become after a season of use by the high schools. The fields are maintained by the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, and over-seeded in the months proceeding the tournament. All coaches and players who walk out on our fields are impressed with the condition of the playing fields.
Having all games played in one location means coaches, parents, bus drivers or spectators, do not need to drive all over town searching for area schools. You can walk from one field to another, watching any of 5 - 7 games which are being played at any one time by teams from all over the nation. Also, our fields are located in a quiet area of Las Vegas. Have you ever attended a tournament hosted at a high school and been cautious entering the event due to the location?
Have you ever attended a tournament where you were unable to locate a tournament director or could only locate staff with no authority to resolve an issue? All of our tournament directors are on-site at the Pigskin Tournament at all times. Should you have any issues, someone with the authority to assist you is always present.
Additionally, we have many supporting volunteers who walk the sidelines during the games, ensuring all participants have the best time possible. These volunteers are there to assist in resolving problems, answering questions, assisting with injuries and ensuring our facility remains clean for your enjoyment while attending the Pigskin Tournament.
And lastly is the "tail gate party" atmosphere found at our tournament. Hosting our event at one location allows us to pre-arraign for an Action-shot Photographer, gourmet coffee and ice cream vendors, food concessions with a wide selection of items, as well as music throughout the event.
Who hosts the Pigskin Tournament?
The Pigskin Tournament is a group of knowledgeable LOCAL football organizers. We are local business men, ex football players, coaches and volunteers. We do accept teams from local Las Vegas leagues into the tournament. However, contrary to other tournament promoters claims, local teams have no "special rules" or advantage in our tournament. Our integrity is unquestioned by the teams that return every year to the Pigskin Tournament. You may read just a few of the comments that we receive year after year on our home page.
What are the divisions for the Football Tournament?
The Pigskin Tournament is for players ages 6 - 16 years old. There are not pre-determined divisions or weight structures for this tournament. When a team applies for the tournament, we will take that team's roster information and use it to pair a team against a matching team based upon:
Average Player Age of each team
Average Player Weight of each team
Minimum and Maximum player's age on each team
Minimum and Maximum player's weight on each team
We do not take into account win/loss records. Registration for the tournament is due by October 1st 2008. Most leagues have only played half of their games by this time. So for a coach to provide a win/loss record to rate "team strength" is meaningless, as the coach must guess how his team will do in the remainder of their regular season games.
All teams are welcome to attend this tournament, but past 3 tournaments have drawn many league champion teams.
There must be a MINIMUM of 22 rostered players to compete in the tournament. NO EXECEPTIONS
If you have less than 22 rostered players, you may bring up to 6 additional players from another team in your league, as long as they played IN THE SAME DIVISION. The ultimate goal is to make sure that there is a minimum of at least 22 players on your roster. If your team still does not have 22 players, you may still register. Please contact us for special circumstances.
When do we have to arrive in Las Vegas?
All football teams must arrive in Las Vegas NO LATER than Wednesday, November 25th 2009 Check in will consist of multiple orientations (short in length), but critical to a smooth, fair and orderly tournament. These "check ins and weigh ins" can start as early as Tuesday, November 24th, 2009, but will not be facilitated as a team later than Wednesday, November 25th, 2009. Single player check in accommodations may be arranged for late arrivals, but are discouraged.
When do we play our games?
All games will be played beginning on Thanksgiving day, Friday and Saturday. Your game times may vary and could be between 7:00 am and 8:00 pm. The final games of each night should end by 10:00 pm. Game schedules will be determined upon close of the tournament registration. You will receive a tournament schedule, showing times you play and opposing teams at team check-in.
What is the cost to attend the tournament?
There is a $250.00 deposit for each team planning to attend the football tournament. Once your team has been accepted into the tournament, the deposit is non-refundable. A $50.00 registration(if staying at a preferred hotel $60.00 in not staying at a preferred hotel) fee for each player and $25.00 for each coach participating with the team must be paid by October 31st,, 2009.
Example: 22 players participating x $50.00 = $1100 + 6 coaches x $25.00 = $150.00 + $250 Deposit = $1,500.00 total for the team (excluding accommodations).
Why is the Pigskin Tournament less in cost than other tournaments?
This is a great question that we receive all the time. The ONLY fees payable to the Pigskin Tournament are player fees, team deposit and a minimal Coaches fee to cover expenses. Other tournaments charge the same fee for coaches as players. We DO NOT charge gate admission fees for spectators to watch any and all games. The Pigskin Tournament does not charge "Late Registration Fees". EVERYONE in our tournament pays the SAME registration costs. This can save YOUR team and parents hundreds of dollars compared with other tournaments.
What is the cost of the Hotel Accommodations?
We have arranged for discounted room costs at several major hotel resorts, both on and off "The Strip". The room costs will vary by day of week and which hotel you choose to stay at. We have contracted with both family oriented, mid priced hotels and upscale hotels so that you will have a varying range of prices to choose from.
Please visit our "Hotel Accommodations" page for further details.
Do I have to stay at one of your preferred hotels?
NO. However, there will be an additional tournament cost of $10.00 per player participant should you decide to stay at a hotel other than one which we have contracted with.
Why you may ask? This is due to contractual obligations to the hotels to reserve a predetermined amount of rooms for our guests. If these rooms are not utilized by Pigskin Tournament attendees, there are penalty clauses which the hotels may invoke. This would raise the cost of the tournament to all attending teams. Therefore, in an effort to keep our tournament as inexpensive to YOUR team as possible, we must encourage participants to stay at our contracted hotels.
We feel that we have found the best room rates available at some of the best hotels in Las Vegas. The Thanksgiving week is very busy in Las Vegas and room rates generally tend to rise during this time. Our rates are guaranteed by the hotels months in advance, but the choice is YOURS.
What are the important dates I need to know?
Football team deposits are due by October 1st, 2009.
Player and Coach registration fees are due by October 31st , 2009.
Begin Weigh-ins, Tuesday, November 24th, 2009.
End Weigh-Ins, Wednesday, November 25th, 2009.
First Games, Thursday, November 26th, 2009.
Final Games, Saturday, November 28th 2009.
Awards Presentations, Saturday, November 28th, 2009, immediately following your division's final game.
What are the tournament rules?
The football tournament will be played under current National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) rules. The football games will be officiated by high school officials.
How do I get started registering?
Attach an official team roster, obtained from your league, and a copy of your league's or team's insurance policy, to the tournament registration form. You will need to pay the team fee when you submit the registration form. Please NO CHECKS. Make money orders or guaranteed bank drafts payable to "National Youth Football League".
What is the X-men Rule?
The X-men rule is designed to keep youth football both competetive and safe for all players. Based on the age and weight of each player on November 26th 2009, we calculate the average weight of the division. We will take the lightest and heaviest player on a team and remove there weight from the calculation. After calculating the average weight, we multiply the average by 15 percent. That 15 percent is added on to average weight, and that becomes the minimum weight an x-men can be. If a player exceeds the average weight calculation, they will become an x-men, which can easily be identified by a large X on the back of the players' helmet. All X-men are considered "down-line" postion players only (no skill position) and can NOT advance the ball.I have a question that wasn't answered here.
If you have a question that we didn't answer on this page, please e-mail us at Info@Pigskintournament.com.