On May 11, 2026, senior Mia Rivera signed her letter of intent to Our Lady of the Lake University to play flag football. “I was proud and it felt good to have people there who believed in me,” she said. 

Although Rivera played both basketball and flag football, she was recruited to play flag football. “I’ve always wanted to play college sports, whether it’s basketball or flag football, it feels good to have my dream come true,” Rivera said. 

Our Lady of the Lake University is a Catholic, private university in Texas with locations in San Antonio and Houston, which has an acceptance rate of 66%. “From the first phone call I had with the coach, I felt like he believed in me,” Rivera said. “He trusted that I could bring something to the program.” 

Rivera decided to major in Criminal Justice, with a minor in psychology. “I am looking to join the police academy after college and become a police officer,” she said. 

She was chosen for her skill in the game. “Coach told me that he was very impressed with my talent,” she said. “That I play the game with a lot of confidence and passion.” 

During high school she played quarterback, safety and wide receiver. In college she will continue to play these positions. “I feel like that’s where my skill sets are best at,” Rivera said. 

Her flag football coach of 2 years, Marisol Rasul, helped Rivera believe in herself. “I am very proud of Mia, she is a very aggressive player and she has the heart in the fire to be a great player,” Rasul said. “The hardship was the unknown, since flag football is a new sport especially in college… Now some of the NAIA schools are starting to have it.”

Getting here didn’t come easy. “I worked hard, I was always working on the weekends, joining different teams just to get better and be seen,” Rivera said. 

“It didn’t hit me until I stood up to say something that there will be a time where I’ll yell her name out and she is not going to be there,” her father, Ernesto Rivera said. “I am extremely proud of what she has accomplished.”