Youth tackle football

[LogGrad98]

Thank you, everyone. He’s in first ground now and tackle starts in 2nd….I’ll definitely withhold him til at least 3rd or 4th grade. Possibly longer. That is, if we ever let him play. Most everyone I’ve spoken with, even football coaches, say to wait til he’s 8-9 years old. Or that they might not let their kids play. I will of course see how things naturally play out. He’s doing a ridiculous amount of sports at the moment.

Fall: Travel soccer, flag football, Sunday night lacrosse practice…fall ball could also be added sigh

Winter: Travel soccer, rec basketball, rec wrestling

Spring: Rec baseball, lacrosse, football speed and agility, possibly travel baseball

It’s a ton but I’d rather have him active than watching garbage on Netflix after school…plus he seems to like going for social reasons. Things just aren’t the same as when I was a kid and we would walk or bike all over to hang with friends…add that he’s never sighed at going to a sport and it’s fine. The biggest pain in the *** is just the chauffeuring. Carpooling helps a ton.

I’m thinking in 3-4 years his taking to soccer will either gain or wane and that’ll drive what he wants to do since it’s year round which I can’t stand. I also can’t stand that his coach has the kids in the same position all game long. But whatever.

Agreed I wanted mine to be active instead of TV zombies, I think that is a good call. I also think it is good to let him try a lot of different things. It both prepares him physically for many different activities which bodes well for reduced injuries down the road, but it also lets him try different things to see what he really loves and wants to stick to long term. My parents did that with me, supported whatever I wanted to try, and I ended up a 3 sport athlete in high school, reducing to bball only my jr year on, but I think the others helped me be more prepared for the focus on basketball later on. We supported our kids in it all too. They just ended up with not much interest in any of it. Was too bad about that with my oldest, as he had some athletic ability and talent in both football and basketball, but he just never really loved playing either one. But I think it is always good for them to have those choices available to them, to at least have the experience. All of my kids played soccer and basketball for a few years each at a minimum. My daughter played a few years of softball where she did pretty good until her asthma got the best of her. They all say they were happy they had the chances to try out different sports, so that is a plus. Good on ya for how you are working with your kids on this stuff. Even if they end up not really being into it, it will be a character building activity that will last for years to come.

 

[Al-O-Meter]

6 rushes, 215 yards, 3 tds lol

The kids has jets.

Carpooling also helps with the social aspect, which will help keep him engaged. My son's best friend is the kid he carpools with, and he didn't even know him when we set the carpool up.

Lastly, watch like a hawk for signs of burnout. My kid was doing 4 sports including one night every week where he went straight from one practice to another with the only break being the 8 minutes it took to drive between venues. We don't do that any longer.

 

[Miggs]

Yes I know about burnout. It’s very real. This will end sooner rather than later. It’s simply too much imo but he’s so young that I get the sense he doesn’t look at it that way and is just there running around having fun. Idk. Maybe I’m wrong.

He always says lacrosse is his favorite sport yet he doesn’t go out back and practice off the rebounder. Baseball and football are the two sports he asks me to go out back and practice with him. Having a catch. Throwing pitches. Etc. So we’ll see. So far as jets, tbh, I thought he looked about 85% speed there, I think, because he’s not holding the football properly…so I’ll show him how to hold it again…but yeah, little dude has speed.

 

[Miggs]

I think I might pull him from sports all of next summer (really spring sports end around June 1) so that he has nothing for 2.5 months…just do vacations and let him play…I’ll go out back with him to have a catch and all like that if he asks me of course but no organized team sports.

 

[bigb]

I played high school football. My wife was adamant about not letting our boys play. Eventually, I joined that camp. Then I learned how they actually teach kids to tackle around here (not leading with head, using shoulders, etc) and I wanted them to play again. My wife finally acquiesced when my oldest son was going into 6th grade. My middle son is now in 6th grade and is in his first year of tackle football. They both stepped right in and absolutely killed it. My oldest son is a sophomore and getting plenty of varsity time (lettered as a freshman) and the middle boy literally plays every play of every game.
I used to have a neighbor that played JUCO level and was on the BYU team (I don’t think he ever actually played there though) who said he wouldn’t start his boys til high school. He moved away well before that age, so I don’t know if he stuck to that.

 

[Miggs]

Based on all the input I’ve received, I’ve determined there’s no way I’ll let him play tackle football next year and most likely not the year after either. 4th grade would be the soonest I’d let him play. And I need to do more research on my own because my understanding iirc is that all the little concussions at a young age are very, very bad.

 

[bigb]

Based on all the input I’ve received, I’ve determined there’s no way I’ll let him play tackle football next year and most likely not the year after either. 4th grade would be the soonest I’d let him play. And I need to do more research on my own because my understanding iirc is that all the little concussions at a young age are very, very bad.

FWIW, my two oldest kids got hurt waaay worse playing lacrosse than they did their main sports. My oldest daughter played travel club level soccer for a decade and never got a single injury. Her senior year of high school she decided to play lacrosse and boom, a concussion that makes her miss three weeks. My oldest boy plays tackle football for years and nothing. Freshman year plays lacrosse and breaks his freaking wrist.

 

[Miggs]

FWIW, my two oldest kids got hurt waaay worse playing lacrosse than they did their main sports. My oldest daughter played travel club level soccer for a decade and never got a single injury. Her senior year of high school she decided to play lacrosse and boom, a concussion that makes her miss three weeks. My oldest boy plays tackle football for years and nothing. Freshman year plays lacrosse and breaks his freaking wrist.

Yeah honestly even though he’s been playing for a year and a half I sort of worry about soccer more. No head protection. Turf fields 60% of the time, always indoors and 1/3 of the time outdoors. My son got an awful one indoors. He had a headache for 2-3 weeks after slamming down.

 

[Al-O-Meter]

I sort of worry about soccer more.

I'm friends with half a dozen guys who played on the Penn State soccer team. Without exception, every one of them had knee surgery within 10 years of graduating. It hasn't stopped them from doing anything but still that is pretty crazy.

 

[Miggs]

I'm friends with half a dozen guys who played on the Penn State soccer team. Without exception, every one of them had knee surgery within 10 years of graduating. It hasn't stopped them from doing anything but still that is pretty crazy.

Yeah my neighbor is the Associate HC at a major D1 school. The HC has a Natty, a few other final fours. And every year I feel like he’s telling me about 1 or 2 kids who are out for the year because of an injury, usually a knee.