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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Why is he desperate to play? Is there a specific reason he wants to do football over other spofts? I would ask him a lot of questions and have him do a lot of research on long term risk of concussion before you say yes or no. [/quote]

Friends doing it.  Perceived coolness.  He plays flag football and he is really good.[/quote]

Being good at flag doesn't at all mean he'll be good at tackle. It's going to be quite the wake up call when he takes his first hit, especially when playing with boys who've been playing tackle football for years. [/quote]

For real. And all those parents saying it's just like hockey or soccer - no it is not. Getting crushed open field by a 200 lb linebacker moving at speed is nothing like a hockey check. I've played both. I don't know what the soccer people are talking about. That's like comparing ballet to war. Football hits are something else, even for hockey players.

I think football is a great game and, depending on the school and the coach, it can be a good culture. Back in my day, every practice was full contact and that is rough for every player. But that's lightened up and practices are fine. But game day, it's still very real. We live in a W district, and those schools are struggling to put together teams. A lot of "small" kids, meaning totally normal boys who probably shouldn't be playing football. So a bunch of boys who are maybe 160 to 180. I think it was Damascus that had this defensive tackle who must have been 6'6 and 280 lbs who ultimately went on to play for Georgia. He was crushing these 180 lb senior boys like they were toys - but he was very nice about it. Just playing the position. But it was mayhem.

In high school football in the DMV, you are going to get these guys. Future D1 players who are so much bigger, stronger, and faster than your kid. And football is a zero sum game. It's not a nice sport. It's about physical dominance. That's the appeal for boys. It is the most mano a mano sport there is - at every position except for kicker. The problem these days is that there is such variation in size and strength. And if you don't have a big boy, varsity high school tackle football is going to smash them hard.

My boys are 6'1 and 6'2 and strong and I still discouraged them from playing football. There are better sports where you don't have to deal with the invariable injuries. But it's the head contact that is the most concerning. CTE is very real. And in the end, football doesn't seem worth it - given the long term risks - from brains to knees. If there was a better system out there to keep boys in certain weight classes, I''d be ok with it. But it's not like that out there in varsity high school football. You will be be playing against 200 pound very fast linebackers and 280 pound defensive tackles. The glory isn't worth the cost. [/quote]

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