If you’re still on a football high thanks to the Super Bowl — and Jennifer Lopez and Shakira’s dazzling half-time performance — you’ll be happy to know a new project is in the works from the first woman to serve as a coach in the NFL. Dr. Jen Welter is teaming up with Amelia Baker and Mackenzie Munro’s Blonde Mamba and independent producer Casey Russell Hanley on “FanGirl,” “a half-hour single-camera comedy about BFFs who become the first-ever female assistant coaches for their local team,” Variety reports.
Described as “‘Broad City’ meets ‘Friday Night Lights,’” “FanGirl” tells the story of Ashley and Jamie, football superfans who, “through an absurd series of events, become the first female assistant coaches for the University of Michigan Wolverines. Exploring issues such as feminism, equality, and fandom, the series follows two young women in positions of power in a male-dominated industry, fighting to be recognized as more than just fan girls while battling to secure the university’s first National Championship in nearly two decades,” the source summarizes.
“This is the perfect time to elicit a real conversation about women coaching men,” said Welter, who served as an assistant coaching intern for the NFL’s Arizona Cardinals. “Because it is the only sport without gender parity at any level, football provides a unique lease to look at sport, culture, and what happens when women enter a ‘man’s world.’ Entertainment and culture are entwined, and this show parallels the real progress we are making in football, which means we will be able to address it in real time,” the “Play Big: Lessons in Being Limitless from the First Woman to Coach in the NFL” author added.
Welter hasn’t just made history on the sidelines — she’s also made history on the field. She became “the first woman to play professional football with men when she joined the Texas Revolution, of the Champions Indoor Football arena football league,” the source details.
“FanGirl’s” writing team includes Ellie Monahan (“The Boys,” “Mr. Robot”) and Jacqueline Toboni (“The ‘L’ Word: Generation Q,” “Grimm”).
Check out a video of Welter discussing making history and breaking barriers below.
