Ocala’s Juice Bucs Beat New York City 33-21 for NFL Flag 14U Title, Drake Eason Named MVP

The Marion County Juice Bucs are national champions. Ocala’s 14U squad beat New York City 33-21 on Sunday to win the Boys’ Under-14 division at the 2026 NFL FLAG Championships, and quarterback Drake Eason walked away with tournament MVP honors, according to NFL.com.

Eason wasn’t even the starting quarterback when the tournament began. By the championship game, he’d become the whole story.

He threw for 168 yards and three touchdowns in the title game alone, connecting with Kingstyn Henderson to open the scoring and help the Bucs jump out to a 21-7 lead early, according to WCJB. Ashton Garnes added a pick-six on defense to keep the momentum rolling, and Eason capped the defensive onslaught with a second interception return for a touchdown of his own — his second straight game with a defensive score.

The Bucs from Ocala, FL are the 14U Boys Flag Champions!

2026 @NFLFLAG Championships on ESPN/NFLNhttps://t.co/u9u8C2TJ7A to find a league near you pic.twitter.com/iSOFqoUEfi

— NFL (@NFL) July 26, 2026

A Semifinal That Almost Didn’t Happen

Ocala nearly didn’t make it to the final at all. Facing the Giants in the semifinal, the Bucs trailed with 14 seconds left before Eason found Henderson for the go-ahead score, per WCJB. The defense sealed it moments later when Dzyreron Simpkins intercepted a Hail Mary in the end zone to close out a 19-18 win.

Eason set the tone in that game with a one-handed interception he returned for a touchdown, then found a wide-open Garnes for a second-half touchdown that briefly put Ocala up 13-12.

Eason: “We Keep Pushing”

Eason kept his postgame comments short. “We keep pushing. We couldn’t let off the break,” he said, per WCJB’s report. Asked about a behind-the-back pass he threw during the run, he shrugged it off: “That’s just me. I just had to try again.”

The celebration plans were already in motion by the time the team left the field. “We’re supposed to have a party when we get home,” Eason said, mentioning stops at Chili’s and Dave & Buster’s on the way home.

Part of a Bigger Weekend at Grand Park

The Bucs’ title came on the same day as the tournament’s other marquee final. The Los Angeles Seahawks won the Girls’ High School division in dramatic fashion, with Ava Ortman finding Mya Smith for the winning score, according to NFL.com. Both finals capped the third annual NFL FLAG Championships, held at Grand Park Sports Campus.

Colts quarterback Daniel Jones presented the championship hardware to the Bucs on the field, per NFL.com’s recap.

Championship Game Box Score

Flag football’s national spotlight keeps growing. The sport now counts more than 20 million participants worldwide and will make its Olympic debut at the 2028 Los Angeles Games, according to a report from the Canton Repository on a previous year’s tournament.