RINCON, Ga. — On a recent weekday afternoon, Ashlyn McNeal’s 24 third-graders at Ebenezer Elementary School weren’t just watching NFL highlights in their favorite team jerseys — they were adding up scores, practicing new vocabulary and learning life lessons, all while cheering for their favorite teams.
McNeal is the only teacher in Effingham County using the “NFeLementary” curriculum, a program created by Miami, Florida, third-grade teacher Mary Crippen that blends football into core subjects for grades 3–5. The curriculum is used by about 300 teachers across the U.S. and Canada, McNeal said. The idea is simple but powerful: use the excitement of the NFL to make math, reading, geography, writing and even character education come alive.
For McNeal, now in her second year at Ebenezer after teaching at Springfield Elementary, the curriculum answered a challenge she had seen in her nine years teaching third grade, specializing in English language arts.
“Over the years I’ve noticed that third-graders sometimes struggle to get excited about reading and writing,” she said. “Some find it boring. I was looking for ways to better engage them.”
That search led her to Crippen. McNeal started following the Miami teacher on social media and was struck by the energy in her classroom. “I saw the excitement in her students, so I contacted her,” McNeal said. When Crippen made the curriculum available for purchase this summer, McNeal jumped in immediately.
“The curriculum gave me the starting pieces,” she said. “But the best part is being part of a community. There’s a Facebook group with other teachers across the country and Canada who are using it, and that’s been an invaluable resource.”
The classroom looks the part.
Students wear jerseys or T-shirts matching their chosen teams and decorate their notebooks with their team’s logo. Weekly standings are updated on the whiteboard. The class has even adopted its own franchise — the Kansas City Chiefs — inspired partly by McNeal’s Taylor Swift fandom. Swift’s fiancé, Travis Kelce, is a star player on the team. McNeal, showing her team spirit, wore a Chiefs sweatshirt. On her desk, a big red “Easy” button sits topped with a photo of Swift.
On this day, students sat cross-legged on the floor watching highlight clips from NFL Week 3. When the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, leading 26-20, lined up for a field goal against the New York Jets, McNeal paused the video.
“If the Bucs make this field goal, what would the score be?” she asked.
“29-20!” one student called out.
“Right,” McNeal said.
Then came the twist: the Jets blocked the kick, ran it back for a touchdown and erased a 9-point deficit. The Buccaneers eventually won 29-27 on a last-second field goal, but McNeal used the moment to point to a vocabulary word written on the board: perseverance.
“What does perseverance mean?” she asked.
“You keep fighting until the end,” a student answered.
Later, the class watched Chargers kicker Cameron Dicker — the kids call him “Dicker the Kicker” — make a game-winning field goal against the Broncos.
“Everything you do, every play during the game matters,” McNeal reminded them. “Is a game won or lost by one person?”
“No!” the students shouted back.
That led to a discussion about tenacity and work ethic. McNeal asked the students for examples of positive work habits they could practice at home. Hands shot up: “Clean my room.” “Empty the dishwasher.”
Students eagerly shared ideas and connected the lessons from football to their own lives.
“It has definitely made the classroom so much more engaging,” McNeal said.
Principal Tony Sikes, who sat in on the class that day wearing a tie adorned with every NFL team logo, said McNeal approached him with a presentation seeking approval for the curriculum.
For Sikes, a self-proclaimed long-suffering Atlanta Falcons fan, it wasn’t a tough sell.
“Once I was sure it would help the students meet the state’s standards in English, math, social studies and science, I gave the OK,” he said. “Ashlyn also sprinkles in character education. She does such a great job, and the students — boys and girls — and the parents have embraced the program.”
Sikes said he wouldn’t be surprised if more teachers ask to adopt the program next year.
McNeal shared details about the curriculum in a letter to parents at the beginning of the school year.
The “NFeLementary” program runs throughout the NFL season. Each student drafts a team to manage as their franchise, tracking wins and losses, recording stats and completing weekly research reports.
The lessons sharpen a wide range of skills:
Daily lessons last just 10–15 minutes, but their impact lasts far longer.
Student Beau Dubberly, general manager of the Bills, said, “It makes it really fun. It helps me learn more about my favorite football team.”
McNeal said the students would get a kick out of being called the general managers, or GMs, of their teams.
“I’m learning life lessons,” said Hattie Jo Arnsdorff, GM of the Steelers.
Wesley Moore, GM of the Texans, took his passion beyond the classroom when his parents drove him to Jacksonville to watch the Texans play the Jaguars live.
“Being in the stadium was awesome,” he said.
He proudly showed off his Texans binder, filled with weekly reports documenting game-time weather, time zone changes, the states the Texans played in, and passing and receiving yards.
The excitement isn’t confined to the classroom.
Lauren Dubberly, Beau’s mother, said, “The NFL curriculum has been so much fun. The whole family is involved. We know the Bills’ schedule and have to stop and watch the games. We might be the biggest Bills fans in Georgia. Beau already knows what Bills jersey he wants for Christmas.”
She recalled a moment after Eagles defensive lineman Jalen Carter spat on Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott in Week 1.
“Beau came home and told us they discussed it in class. Ms. McNeal explained sportsmanship, and I thought it was an important life lesson for him.”
Kathryn Moore, Wesley’s mother, said, “It’s been a wonderful year so far. This curriculum has really motivated Wesley. He looks forward to going to school every day. We love his excitement and how it has opened his mind. That’s what every parent wants.”
Rosie Galloway, an enthusiastic Panthers GM, highlighted the Buffalo Bills’ dramatic Week 1 comeback over the Ravens. “Fans left because they thought the Bills would lose, but they were persistent and came back and won.”
When Sikes witnessed the vocabulary and insights McNeal’s third-graders were sharing, he just smiled.
“How many third-graders are using the word ‘persistent’?” he asked.
For McNeal, that’s the ultimate victory: football may be the hook, but the real wins are happening every day in her classroom.
