Tylertown (Miss.) High School won the NFL High School Player Development 7-on-7 Regional Tournament presented by the Louisiana National Guard on Saturday, June 14 at the New Orleans Saints training facility in Metairie.

"We've been coming for the past, I think this is the ninth time we've come, at least in my tenure," said Newman Coach Nelson Stewart, whose team made it to the semifinal round. "It's just a first-class tournament. It's free for our players to come in here. Not only do we get fed but we get to come in here and use these facilities. The competition has gotten better every year. For us, it's our favorite 7-on-7 we do all summer."

The Tylertown Chiefs will represent the Saints at the NFL's National 7-on-7 Tournament in Indianapolis on July 13-16.

Tylertown defeated another Mississippi high school, St. Martin, in the championship game 28-24. This was the first time in Saints tournament history that two Mississippi schools competed for the title.

Nineteen area high school teams competed in the non-contact 7-on-7 single-elimination tournament which began at 8:30 a.m. and ended around 5:30 p.m. Each team consisted of 12 players and two coaches. Games were played on the indoor and outdoor fields.

During each team's break, players sat through an information session by Saints Youth Programs Director Jason Trosclair to learn the importance of behavior and education that will help them on and off the field.

"The life skills, for the Saints, is probably the biggest thing for all the programs we do, whether it's the little ones or all the way to high school," Trosclair said. "With the high school players, it's a lot talking about time management and making sure they are NCAA eligible."

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