When should a child begin organized football?

[exiledNms]

Very, very, very, well-written and sage advice. {snip} I don't know how to coach him out of it...any advice?

Sage? Wow! I've been called a lot of things before, but never "sage"...Wait...does this mean I'm getting old? :smile:
As to coaching, what BamaBuzzard said. I can still catch today at my advanced age (and weight... ) because my cousin who taught me the correct techniques back in the day ordered me to throw the ball up & catch it just as BB described. Start him right away with correct technique while throwing the ball to himself: hands, not arms; watch the ball hit your hands, tuck it away after catching it, etc.
Good luck! Hook me up with some tickets when yours signs w/ the Tide! :biggrin2:
Props to all who have participated in this thread. As already noted, mine's finished w/ his official football career, but still I have thoroughly enjoyed reading the perspectives and hearing the heart behind them.
To all parents of young'uns, I offer this reminder. Coach them up in various sports, sure; but remember that long before and long after you're their coach, you are their parent. Please keep that in perspective! And to all I offer a huge "Roll Tide" from here in the heart of exile.
exiled

 

[BayouBama75]

My last thought on this subject. I think everyone is assumming that all the kids will play when they get to high school. Many kids today (especially in large HS) are too small to play at that level, so if they love the sport and don't play pound ball when they are young, they will never have the opportunity to play "real" football. So my vote is if you kid loves the sport and wants to play 10 years old is not too early because at 14 he may not have the opportunity. My kid was only 110 pounds at 14.

 

[TexasTideFan]

So my vote is if you kid loves the sport and wants to play 10 years old is not too early because at 14 he may not have the opportunity.

Very good point. Times have surely changed in high school athletics, especially in football. When I played (I graduated in 1990), most OL's we faced had kids that averaged maybe 230. If there was a dude that went near 300, everbody in the district and probably half the state knew about him. Now, a 300 pound kid doesn't raise an eyebrow. In fact, I bet there are alot of upper level high school teams that have OL's that are larger than alot of 70's and 80's era NFL teams. The reasons for this are simple, kids are starting in football much earlier than they used to, are starting to lift at a much younger age, and are eating and taking supplements that before, were unheard of.

 

[Bamabuzzard]

Very good point. Times have surely changed in high school athletics, especially in football. When I played (I graduated in 1990), most OL's we faced had kids that averaged maybe 230. If there was a dude that went near 300, everbody in the district and probably half the state knew about him. Now, a 300 pound kid doesn't raise an eyebrow. In fact, I bet there are alot of upper level high school teams that have OL's that are larger than alot of 70's and 80's era NFL teams. The reasons for this are simple, kids are starting in football much earlier than they used to, are starting to lift at a much younger age, and are eating and taking supplements that before, were unheard of.

You're exactly right. "Sports" of any kind has now become a year around thing. Which means "training" (i.e. weight training, supplements, speed classes etc.) has become a year around event. Add to it (like you've mentioned) the protein, carbohydrate, vitamin supplements and you've got a "superior" athlete at a much younger age than 15 to 25 years ago. Times have definitely changed and I doubt they're going to go back to the "old way" of doing things.

 

[stlimprov]

You're exactly right. "Sports" of any kind has now become a year around thing. Which means "training" (i.e. weight training, supplements, speed classes etc.) has become a year around event. Add to it (like you've mentioned) the protein, carbohydrate, vitamin supplements and you've got a "superior" athlete at a much younger age than 15 to 25 years ago. Times have definitely changed and I doubt they're going to go back to the "old way" of doing things.

There are also simply more people. Alabama, for example, grew by a million (3.5 million to 4.5 million) from 1970-2000 (U. S. Census). That is almost 30% growth. That would suggest that there are more kids in the top end of the curve of size and talent. Since there are only so many starting spots on a team, that would suggest that some of the middling kids would get pushed out. It may also be the case that those on the top end of the spectrum benefit more from advances in training and nutrition, making it less likely that a middling talent can overcome by determination.

 

[BAMARICH]

SAIP... don't have the time today to read every post earlier. Two things in my opinion, are a factor in this discussion. First, the health of the child. Having a degree in phys ed allowed me to get unique looks into child development... and there is no question that the longer you can allow a child to avoid contact will give you the maximum amount of time to develop muscle/bone structure that's required for the game. Thousands of documented cases show it is a major risk for stunted bone growth in addition to burning a child out before he ever gets to the HS level. As many of you have probably already stated, middle school gets the nod when a child physically is ready for the sport. With that said, I do believe that you have to consider another factor... competition. In many places, if you don't start your child out at an early age, he will never get an opportunity because of either talent development or discrimination (coaching many places is kind of like assembly line operators - pass them along with no changes). If you're talking about a town of 2,000... you probably will not be behind if you hold your child out until MS. However, if you're living in a town or community of 30,000, your child may not even get the opportunity to sniff the field. Personally, if you err on one side, I believe you'll never regret doing what is in the best interest of the child... thousands of parents today wish a second chance could be given them regarding this area. BTW, if you worry about the development idea, start a youth flag football league... many of the great benefits of the actual game without the usual contact problem.