MILFORD – It’s the first Saturday in December and snow is falling, but that hasn’t stopped more than 300 kids from playing some flag football.

From seven in the morning until noon, teams arrived at the Hampshire Dome in Milford to participate in the opening weekend of youth flag football. And they’ll do it every Saturday through December and into January.

“It’s unbelievable,” said Chris Lorden, who has helped coach for the five years the leagues have been operating. “It’s a great organized way for the kids to stay active and it’s teaching them so much.”

This session features five different leagues – two each for U10 and U12 teams, one for U14 – with a total of 30 teams, and thanks to the help of the NFL’s Play 60 program, the teams get to wear official NFL jerseys.

Lorden’s team is sporting Green Bay Packers jerseys, and the coach said he gets questions about the league throughout the year.

“I get emails from parents asking about playing and if we’re doing it again,” he said. “If (the kids) weren’t out here on a day like today, they’d be inside online or playing video games. Instead, they’re here.”

So are a few other people who have helped put the program together. Tom Sapienza, Hampshire Hills’ director of operations, helps get the teams set up when they arrive. Ben Graves, the flag football coordinator, makes sure things are running smoothly with the teams. Jamey Lawton, the coaches and referees coordinator, answers any questions both groups might have about rules and procedures.

“A lot of the time, I’m making sure (the referees) understand the difference in the rules between U10 and U12,” Lawton said, adding that all of the refs also play for the Southern New Hampshire Beavers semi-pro football team. “We get a lot of assistance from the Beavers. They help some of the players and encourage them.”

Some of the teams are made up of players who have just finished up playing fall youth football in the Milford and Peterborough areas, along with what Lawton referred to as “free agents,” or kids who are coming out to join their friends on the flag football teams.

“It’s really well organized for a rec league,” Sapienza said. “It’s run formally, but we make it loose, too.”

There are enough players on each team that most can run out different offensive and defensive units, and there are some players who alternate between each side of the ball. Inside the dome, there are three fields set up, so that six teams are playing at the same time. Every team gets to play each week, and every team gets a chance to play in the playoffs at the end of the year.

While the league is bigger than ever this year, Lawton would like to see it continue to grow, perhaps with the addition of some teams from Nashua and Manchester.

“It’s the only game in town right now,” he said. “The kids are excited to be here.”