Illinois lawmakers are considering a bill to outlaw tackle football for 12 and under. Parents apparently don't know any better what is right for their own kids. I was heavily involved in Pop Warner for many years as a coach, coaches rep, and board member. I also coached many years in the CYO football program back in the 70s.The issue I always had/have, is coach/dads molding an offense around their QB son instead of focusing on fundamentals and rules of the game. Because of similar weight and age restrictions, serious injury was rare, if ever. The over/under rule concerned me. Older kid playing in a smaller weight class was not a good mix IMHO. I recommend if a youngster isn't sure about playing or might be timid about hitting, flag football leagues are sprouting up all over the place.
Youth Football
- Thread starter Toby Smart
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all for it. flag only under 12 okay by me. you can still teach the fundamentals.
We had to cancel Parent's Day which took place at the final home game of the season. The parents were announced with their son and all would walk out from the end zone to the 50. The Mom was then presented with roses. With broken families, eventually there were usually one or two scuffles about a husband's new wife or girlfriend insisting on walking with the player to the 50 or the Mom's new boyfriend wanting to be part of the festivities. Families had to be separated. The PD had to be called a couple of times. Finally, as a board, we just said enough and cancelled the whole Parent's day festivities. The kids didn't care. They just wanted to play.
Yup! Every parent thinks their 5 year old in tee ball is going to get a 300+ million contract in the majors.
Youth football is here but not as wide spread / popular in Canada but they made similar changes in hockey many years ago. While hockey does not have tackling the removal of hitting in youth has allowed skill and speed to flourish. There is no hitting in Rep/Competetive until age 12 and none in house league. There is still lots of physicality but no body checking. The NHL and major junior leagues today look very different when hitting and size were once the most important thing...now it is about speed and skill. Football is different and you have to have hitting but the skill players will flourish if tackling is eliminated. It will reduce injuries and keep more kids interested. Eventually the tackling will come but what's the rush?
Where I grew up didn't have tackle football until 7th grade.... that is about 12 years old right?
Tackling at an early age usually involves upright gang tackling. Very few youngsters have the courage to go in shoulder pads first. The kids are the same age and in the same weight class with an occasional outlier. At least that's the way it was when I was involved in the 70s, 80s, and early 90s. CYO football was much more involved. You had 6th, 7th, and 8th graders playing. Weight limits were 0-180 lbs. That's a huge difference. 180 lb 8th grader hitting a 95 pound 6th grader. Weights increased by 1 lb per week for weigh ins. Still, parents were always the problem. Not injuries. It's up to the YMCA's and Pop Warners of the world to start up and encourage flag football , at least till 12 . Then, these HS varsity coaches need to re-educate these Pop Warner dads about the importance of fun and fundamentals before collisions.
I went to Parochial Schools. We started playing tackle football at age 9. I coached a league for a couple of years for 8, 9, and 10 year olds. I love the game. I have three daughters and they all cheered for football. If I had a son, I would not encourage him to play tackle football at an early age. And I agree about the parents.
The 1st sentence was powerful. A sign of the times. If I can’t or do not want to, then i don’t want you to either. If I can or want to then you must too.
agree I coached pop warner my sons started playing at 8. I started playing at 11 with cyo. why do the politicians have to get involved. the sport is less dangerous at the younger levels and more as they get older
I can't remember anyone getting seriously injured through the ten year old leagues. There were weight maximums and minimums, so you wouldn't have 100 lb kids trucking 70 lb twigs. Age 11 and up is when you started to see injuries greater than a sprained ankle.
Flag football is the future but I don't see how you teach the fundamentals of blocking and tackling. I don't even remember how aggressive the blocking is allowed to be in flag, as we only played it occasionally in gym class.
Flag football is the future but I don't see how you teach the fundamentals of blocking and tackling. I don't even remember how aggressive the blocking is allowed to be in flag, as we only played it occasionally in gym class.
My father has been coaching football since 1974. He has been a HS Head Coach, a JC and small college coordinator and just recently was the defensive coordinator for a team that won a state championship. He is 68 years old and obsessed with the game. I always though he was underemployed. In fact the guy recently blew up my phone asking me about my thought regarding defending the Trey set in the 4-2-5. needless to say it's January and he's probably sitting somewhere with a notebook drawing up a defense for the 10,000th time. He would not let me or my brother play Pop Warner until 8th grade. When I asked him to play in the 5th grade He said " Football is a violent game, played by men and it requires a certain mindset that I don't believe you have until you hit puberty." 6th grade, same thing and so on. I actually spent most of my youth playing Club soccer.
Both of us went on to be 3 year varsity starters at a Boys Catholic School that was a powerhouse during that time. Both were 2 way starters on a Frosh team that routinely had 100 plus kids. We both also received D1 scholarships. So, at least for us, the whole blocking and tackling thing was not an issue.
Both of us went on to be 3 year varsity starters at a Boys Catholic School that was a powerhouse during that time. Both were 2 way starters on a Frosh team that routinely had 100 plus kids. We both also received D1 scholarships. So, at least for us, the whole blocking and tackling thing was not an issue.
I look at this several ways. Yes, the kids need protection. Flag football is one way. The other is placing the decision to play in the hands of the parents. If youth coaches actually taught the fundamentals of blocking and tackling then I would feel much better about the players hitting under 12 and being prepared for full contact when they turn 13, 14, 15 etc. But, many youth coaches don't teach fundamentals. Trophies, winning, and the spotlight on Junior seems to be the aim. Pick a sport. So, I'm torn. My grandson played Little League baseball and now 13 year old travel ball. LL was basically a free for all. Travel ball is all business with tryouts, pitching coaches and emphasis on fundamentals and rules. Poor coaching seems to be a major issue in youth sports IMHO.
My God how did we middle aged folks ever survive? I started played Pop Warner Football when I was 7 and it was TACKLE. Both my boys started playing tackle at age 8. The snowflakes are trying to rule the world. What a fricking joke.
We drank water out of an outside hose. Paint had lead in it. No seat belts. No participation trophies. Sometimes the kids back then didn't make the team but they got over it. Tackle football at the schoolyard with no gear. Dodgeball using golf balls. An extremely violent form of Red Rover called British Bulldog. Monkey bars and tall metal slides on asphalt. Those were the best days of my life. I still have the scars to prove it.
You talk like you were some big time OL in college. I'm beginning to think you played for your college dorms intramural flag football team.
Generation Snowflake was created by over-protecting people when they were children. The emphasis on self-esteem in childhood resulted in adults "tiptoeing around children's sensitivities" to avoid "damaging their wellbeing"
No you did not specifically. Wouldn't it have been great to have some of those same good times minus the scars ? I understand that your generation did not benefit from some of the advances made in technology that mine did at the same age. I am firmly in the camp that full contact football before the age of 12 minimum should be banned. Seeing a 9 year old in full equipment that is far from properly fitted practicing in 85 degree weather in August makes my blood boil. Because something has been standard practice in the past doesn't mean it should continue to be when there are better alternatives.
I always thought water from the outside hose tasted better than the inside water. I guess that is because we played outside and got hot. I might think different now if I stayed on my computer. Hey wait! That's what I'm doing now!!
Nobody here said not to use the latest technology. I guess we should ban youth sports all together until the kiddies are 12. Lets stop kids from playing baseball(they may get hit in the head, or bloody their nose if a ball hits it). Lets stop playing soccer(too many concussions for these poor kids). Lets stop playing hockey when they are young(may fall on the ice and get hurt). Lets stop playing Lacrosse(its too rough). Lets stop girls cheerleading(they may fall and get a boo boo). Better yet lets encourage our youth to hide in their rooms and play video games all day. That way they can be nice and safe from the big bad world that awaits them.
Youth hockey doesn't allow checking until kids reach the bantam level, which is age 13-14. Youth soccer no longer allows headers for any player younger than 10, and restricts headers in practice from 11-13. Cheerleading is looking hard at setting limits on lifting. And some youth baseball leagues are considering making masks on the batting helmets mandatory.
To assume that a kid can't be tough and learn a sport correctly because they were protected from certain portions of it at a young age is asinine, considering some sports have been doing it for quite some time.
Those scars helped mold me. No regrets. If Illinois does pass the law, parents will just cross the border into Indiana and play their youth football in our fine state. As I said earlier, let the parents make the decision but, Pop Warner and YMCA should develop a Flag football program and encourage its use as an alternative. Not all 12 year old tackle players will move on to play in college. Hell, many won't even play in HS. Pop Warner does have restrictions on heat and practice. I myself, would turn practice into shorts and shirts and walk throughs. Dads had a problem with that. Moms did not.
Are the kids going to wear masks when they are playing the field in baseball? Wont the kids fall on the ice even though they can't check? What if the one of the kids trips on another on the soccer field and gets a boo boo on his knee? The point is to protect the kids with the best equipment available and LET THEM PLAY the damn game. No wonder we have a bunch of wimpy snowflakes who get their feelings hurt over nothing. Its a mean/cruel world out there. Lets teach our kids how to deal with it at an early age instead of coddling them.
85 degrees? I remember practicing in August in 95-100 degree weather in HS and guess what.......no one died. You are a leader for the snowflake generation.
Another clueless fool. You 're probably a big fan of drinking and driving too...
curious as to what formerly banned poster you are. so many vile posters in the past. which one were you ?
how's that fake degree working out ? it's quite easy to tell what previously banned poster you are.
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