For 15 years, the Cleveland Muny League played games at Collinwood Athletic Complex; however, in 2024, the turf became too worn to play on.
In stepped the Cleveland Browns and the City of Cleveland to make it possible for the league to play on the field again. On May 6, the Browns broke ground on a new turf field, and on Sept. 26, the renovated Collinwood Athletic Complex was dedicated. Collinwood was the Browns' 16th field project since they started the initiative in 2016.
The Muny League is one of Cleveland's largest youth football leagues and utilizes the other fields installed by the Browns in support of the Cleveland neighborhoods. With these field projects, the league has incorporated different football game models, such as 11-player tackle football and flag football, and rookie tackle – a modified version of football designed by USA Football.
"It's a 7-on-7 version of football with younger kids," Dunn said. "They play half the field, so you can play two games at one time. So, you have four teams on the field playing ball in a controlled, organized, teaching environment that's extremely fun."
As flag football continues to rapidly grow, Rookie Tackle aims to bridge the transition from flag football to 11-player tackle football. The field is 40 yards and narrower than a normal field, allowing fields to be used more efficiently. The rosters are smaller than normal tackle football rosters, which allows for higher coach-to-player involvement and leading to advanced player skill development. Athletes also play multiple positions to learn both offense and defense, giving players the opportunity to be constantly involved in the game.
The Browns have taken charge of working with local leagues and implementing Rookie Tackle throughout Northeast Ohio, the only NFL team to do so within their local market. They have led the way in developing programming and hands-on opportunities to support leagues since Rookie Tackle launched in 2017. Since its launch, the number of Rookie Tackle teams in Cleveland has grown from 12 to 218 with more than 2,700 players on those teams across 19 leagues.
The Browns added four Rookie Tackle leagues in 2025, including the Dream Youth Football Conference, Northcoast Youth Football Conference, Wooster Youth Football League and Ohio Pop Warner. On Oct. 3, the Browns held a Play Football Takeover with the Wooster Youth Football League to celebrate the onboarding of their Rookie Tackle programming.
Throughout the fall of 2025, the Browns hosted Play Football Takeovers at various Rookie Tackle leagues across Northeast Ohio to promote the sport and new leagues. The takeovers featured a variety of interactive experiences, including a Quarterback Toss challenge, photo ops inside a custom Browns locker room and giveaways like Play Football pennants, arm sleeves, wristbands and more to connect with the young athletes.
The Browns' field projects with the revitalization of fields that youth programs use are one of the reasons why youth football participation and team numbers have grown in Northeast Ohio.
"It's clear that the Haslams, the Cleveland Browns, the message is, 'We are Cleveland, we are in support of Cleveland, we are in support of growing the game. We want to see the game continue to be played. We want to see participation rise,'" Dunn said.
The Haslam and Johnson families' commitment to advancing the game has been a constant, as the Collinwood Athletic Complex was the 16th synthetic turf the Browns have installed, which supports the CMSD Senate League and the Cleveland Muny Football League. The Browns have helped install 17 synthetic turf fields across Northeast Ohio, including five in the Cleveland Metropolitan School District (CMSD). These fields are also designed to serve as outdoor classrooms that support student engagement and community development.
Across youth football leagues in Cleveland, the new fields have allowed the programs to play other youth football leagues in different parts of the city. With the turf fields, they can be flexible when they practice or play games.
"It allows for the scheduling of multiple games in a weekend or in some cases, multiple games on a Wednesday or Thursday evening like back-to-back games," Co-President of the North Coast Youth Football Conference Mac Stephens said. "It's been very helpful in that sense because that's always been a struggle, especially with youth football. You put a schedule together, but then you find out halfway through the season the field is too beat up or if it rains too bad, you just can't play."
Dunn noted the ability to play against different Cleveland-area teams provides an opportunity for memories to be made. He said that the car rides for the kids going across the city can feel like a road trip going hours away. He added it gives parents and kids chances to get out of their neighborhoods, out of the house and off electronics in a time where it's hard to do so.
"Give the kids a chance out of Shaker Heights. They get to go down and play at Bump Taylor. You get kids from the south side of town, and they get a chance to go over and play at Euclid Stadium. Or you get a group of kids from the west side that travels to Garfield to play," Dunn said. "So, it's just giving the kids that exposure. You get a group of 10-year-old kids to travel from one side of the city to another, they think they're going downstate and traveling hours away but, they're just up the road going down I-77 traveling 20 minutes away. It's an experience for me so it's all about just providing those experiences."
Through the field projects and Rookie Tackle, the Browns are helping to create experiences for kids and advance the game of football in Northeast Ohio. These efforts of the Browns are a sign of commitment to growing football and bettering Cleveland, creating opportunities to thrive in athletics and beyond.
"(The Browns) put the hours in, they put the time in, they put the dollars in, so that's a clear message of where they want to see this thing go and their commitment to Cleveland," Dunn said.
If you're interested in joining a rookie tackle team in your area or starting a rookie tackle team of your own, visit this link to find information on how to become involved. Learn more about the Browns field projects program by visiting https://www.clevelandbrowns.com/community/youth-football/field-projects.
