Should You Let Your Son Play High School Football?

I am not a football fan. Coming from Finland to me this sport always looked like grown man piling up on top of each other and getting hurt more frequently than any other sport. Correct me if I'm wrong but this was my first impression about twenty years ago. I have learned to follow some of the basic rules and yes been even on the edge of my seat few times seeing the last minutes of nailbiter game. And of course ALL the guys you meet in US just love football, so it is really not a sport you can ignore.

Last spring my son said he wants to play football this fall and I kinda grunted. He has been athletic all his life and used to play Little League Baseball and even won a Championship on his team once. But football? Let's face it my son is not big. He is now about 5'4 and weighs under 100lb with all his equipment on. So summer came and he got a call from one of his friends about practice starting in July. At that time my son said, nah, I changed my mind. I was not going t o argue about that one!

Things escalated early this fall when he did something I did not like very much and he ended up going to my friends house to cool down for about a week. After all he is 14 and as we all know every 14-year-old knows it all, right! Well my friend has a son same age as mine. He has played football for several years and talked my kid into the practice. He is also about 6 feet tall and weighs over 200lb. I said ok, signed all the physical forms and wished him luck.

School started, my son came back home and seemed to be handling life better. Now sisters and brothers were not just a nuisance but part of his family he seemed to learn to respect once again. Team practiced a lot. Then there was a time for a first game. I see him next to his team looking like a "peanut" ready to take the field but never got a chance. After all he did not practice all summer long and this is his first year playing, so I did not expect him to play. Well let's be honest, I was GLAD he did not play, those kids could squash him like a fly if they wanted to!

Next week comes and the raffle tickets are due. Have you tried selling a raffle ticket for your child's sport in today's economy? I've found it almost impossible, everyone is stuck buying their own kids fundraisers and have no money leftover... So we, or more like my boyfriend, ends up buying all the tickets for $100. The positive part about this is that each ticket has a $25 coupon for Ford dealership and he has a Ford. So he will use it to fix up the car with some discount. Maybe even sell few other coupons to his friends who own a Ford for few dollars... ?

That Monday we rushed to the school field to watch the team play again. Our school is not very highly rated on standings on football and the team got crushed for the second time in the row. My son once again did not play at all. After the game he game out of the locker room crying and said the coach is a jerk. I was thinking all the way home it was a mistake to sign him up to football.

Next morning something happened that makes me quite proud to be his mom. He got up at 5am and said he wants to go to school gym to lift weights before school to get better. So my boyfriend took him. He has been going now for 3 weeks almost every school morning, never complained about getting up early. I've found my son to turn into more responsible and goal orientated person who decided he will make this happen.

He has practice every day after school so he is gone from 6am to 6pm and comes home each day little tired but seemingly happy about himself. He does not argue with everyone all the time like he used to, even his sister seems to be not the worst human been in the world these days. His coaches are happy about his dedication and last game he got to play. I'm glad it was away game and I was not there because he got the wind knocked out of him in very first play he was in I was told. I was also told it was not so bad and he got up quickly and kept playing. They lost by 3 points but he was part of it and seems determined to keep that way.

Few days ago we all were supposed to go watch him play but bad rain and floods here in PA resulted a cancellation. I was ready to cheer him with my umbrella and willing to believe I have many future opportunities to do so. I'm still little apprehensive about the violent side of the sport but if being part of this team makes my son more grounded and happy, it is really not a bad thing. I was just thinking how country singer Kenny Chesney says playing football did teach him more about life than anything else. I am glad my son gets to experience this and I know he is a fast runner so just maybe he will do alright!

This morning I filled out my son's thermos with ice and water before sending him to yet another gym practice before the school. We had a moment trying to find his practice uniform I washed last night after him practicing in the mud, thankfully his girdle was found quickly. I sent my seventh grader to school with a $20 so he can go to a school dance and meet his brother at the football game later on when he is done with his practice. I was told Varsity team actually has a chance to win tonight so it is not so bad to meet them there and spend few hours to cheer your local HS football team, even if I'm not the biggest fan!

So to answer the question in my topic, I'd say yes, absolutely! Hopefully it will teach your son about responsibility, team effort, following the rules, learning to face disappointment and well live the life to the fullest! I am aware of the possibilities of getting injuries but if you don't risk a thing, you don't gain a thing!