Complete Guide On High School Football (Soccer)

High school football is a difficult sport, but it also has its benefits. It necessitates a high level of dedication and puts your perseverance to the test. Overall, it’s a great way to confront your limitations and try to push past them. If you are a high school student who enjoys the game, you should consider playing high school football. The advantages of playing football at this level are numerous. It will assist you in developing a number of valuable life skills, such as leadership, responsibility, and time management.

So, if you believe you can play football without jeopardizing your academic pursuits, high school football will benefit you greatly. But are you unsure how to get started? If so, our comprehensive high school football guide should be a worthwhile read for you.

How Long is a High School Football Match? 

Children aged 12 to 16 attend high schools in the United Kingdom, which are also known as secondary schools in England. As a result, at the high school level, a football game lasts less than the standard 90 minutes.

A high school football game is an 11-a-side affair, similar to regular football, with the exception of shorter pitch dimensions and time constraints. The matches are played in 35-minute halves for students in Years 9 and 10. The halves are 40 minutes long for senior students.

How to Prepare Yourself for High School Football Try-outs 

1. Mark Your Calendar for Try-out Dates

The first step toward launching your high school football career is to inquire about tryouts. Typically, tryouts are held in August or just before the start of the school year. Tryout information for your class should be available on your school’s website.

2. Plan Your Schedule 

Juggling multiple responsibilities is easier said than done, but if you can find a happy medium, your life will be far more productive and enjoyable. Fitting football into your rigorous academic schedule would be difficult, but the effort would be well worth it. As previously stated, high school football can help you develop a variety of life skills. Time management is one of the virtues that you can learn while playing football in school, and it will be beneficial in your future endeavors.

The school will usually require you to maintain a certain level of grades. If your academic performance falls below a certain threshold, you will be kicked off the football team. So sacrificing your studies for football is out of the question. If you’re having trouble convincing your parents to let you play football, this particular detail would be a strong argument for you. If they are concerned that it will interfere with your studies, you must demonstrate how high school football can motivate you to improve your grades.

You must also stay current on the rules that the school expects the players to follow. The school’s website has a comprehensive list of all the dos and don’ts. If you have any questions, please contact the coach. Schools can be extremely strict when it comes to missed practice sessions and team meetings. As a result, you must be punctual and plan ahead of time for these. You might even be kicked off the team for being late or missing practice entirely.

3. Work on Your Fitness 

What you lack in football skills, you can compensate for with physical fitness. Getting in shape before high school football tryouts should therefore be your top priority. You must physically prepare yourself to run for 12 minutes without stopping. If you can do that during the tryouts, the coach will be impressed with your endurance. You will need to gradually improve your endurance. To accomplish this, alternate between jogging and running during your workout.

It would be ideal if you could work with a personal trainer to prepare for the try-outs. However, it would not be feasible for everyone. If you do not have the opportunity to work with a trainer, you will have to create your own exercise routine.

4. Perfect your Warmup Game 

Warm up and prepare your body for the intensity of a match or training session before you begin. It will not help your cause if the coach has to walk you through the warm-up process before the try-outs. So, polishing your warm-up routine before the tryouts is a good idea.

To get started, try some low-impact aerobics like jogging or running. Stretch afterward to increase your flexibility. Hold each stretch for at least ten seconds. Finally, do some jumping and turning. It is optional to warm up with or without the ball.

5. Play Practise Games  

Getting some pitch practice will increase your chances of being chosen. The match experience will help you improve your playing abilities and ability to read the game. Try to put into action the moves you’ve been practicing.

However, you must be aware that you must be physically fit for the try-outs. So an injury would throw a wrench in the works. Avoid making or being on the receiving end of a rough tackle. Don’t get caught up in the moment and lose sight of your ultimate goal.

6. Maintain a Healthy Diet 

It is impossible to maintain an athletic physique without making sacrifices. To stay in shape for high school football, you’d have to say goodbye to those delicious fries and burgers. You would need to develop a healthy eating habit.

Consume whenever you are hungry! Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, and skipping it is out of the question. You should concentrate on increasing muscle density. As a result, your diet should include plenty of fiber and fat-free protein.

7. Study the Best Players  

Football can be considered a form of art. Artists, too, must draw inspiration from their idols. You can study the playing styles of your favorite players whenever you want, thanks to the internet. Take note of their abilities and try to incorporate them into your own.

There is a lot to learn from watching the best footballers in action, not just fancy skills. You can study their positioning, passing, and decision-making and apply what you learn to improve your own game. The best way to prepare for your football endeavors is to learn from the best players.

How to Practise for High School Football Try-outs 

To prepare for high school football tryouts, practice at least three times per week in 20-minute increments. Here are some drills you can do:

• Set up 10/15 cones about a foot and a half apart. Dribble past them, always taking three instep touches and three steps outside your feet.
• Attempt to juggle the ball. Try to keep it in your feet, chest, or head for as long as possible.
• Kicks for practice. Try some unique moves, such as the rabona and bicycle kicks, in addition to the standard ones.
• Improve your headers. You must be strong in the air, whether you are a defender or a forward. Heading ability is one of the key characteristics that high school football coaches look for in trials.
• Experiment with passing the ball and shooting it at the target.
• As you roll over the ball, practice changing your body position. This will assist you in shielding opposing players and maintaining possession of the ball.

How to Dazzle Coaches in High School Football Try-outs 

• Before even kicking the ball, you must make a good first impression. Wear no fashion accessories, keep your shirt tucked in, and wear cleats that fit your feet properly.
• Don’t be afraid to be loud on the field and demand a pass from a teammate. High school football coaches admire and value vocal players as potential team leaders.
• Continue to try to reclaim the ball as soon as you lose it. Don’t sag your shoulders. Always take the initiative.
• Always strive to demonstrate that you are a team player. Because high school football is a team sport, a player who promotes team chemistry is a valuable asset to any high school football coach.
• Keep a positive attitude. Take careful note of what the coach says. Check what he/she expects of you. Show yourself to be a coachable player.

Conclusion

We cannot guarantee that adhering to our high school football guidelines will result in you being selected for the team. Because only a limited number of players will be chosen, there is no guarantee that you will be chosen.

What we can guarantee is that if you follow our guidelines, you will have done everything possible to excel in the try-outs. I wish you the best of luck!

Here are Some of our Favourite Football (Soccer) Cleats

Here we will be giving more of an opinion, rather than facts. Are the cleats worth the price that they are being sold at? Should you upgrade from your current cleats, depending on what boots you own? What features stand out in these cleats? If any. Does it do the job? Speed, control, stability etc.

Depending on your needs/preferences. We can also mention its durability, if we have collected enough data on the specific cleats.

What did we expect vs. what we got. Is it maybe overrated/underrated?

Elite

Here’s our pick from the very best of the bunch.

Pro

On your way to the pro leagues? Here’s our pick.

Academy

Want something to start with? Have a look at our pick.