Great news for the long-term well-being of the sport we love:
"... the sport has staged a surprising comeback. Turnout of boys for high school football rose 5.6% last year, according to recently released data by the National Federation of State High School Associations. While participation remains well below the sport’s peak about 15 years ago, its gains last year surpassed the post-Covid rebound of popular fall sports including boys soccer (3.2%) and girls’ volleyball (3.6%). Football also bested the 3% average increase across all high school sports from 2021 to 2022.
Several things are driving football’s turnaround, coaches and administrators say. Covid shutdowns made high school students and their parents hungry for social activities. Steps to prevent and manage concussions have reassured parents. And the NFL has put its colossal muscle behind promoting high school tackle and flag football.
“We’ve actually had a lot more support come back for football as a good, disciplined activity for teenagers,” said Matt Johnson, head coach at Mountain View High in Tucson, Ariz.""
"Prep football remains the most popular high school sport, with more than 1 million athletes, and its recent gains came across the political spectrum, with upticks in New York and Washington state as well as Alabama and Mississippi."
"Rules changes, such as limits on the number of full-contact practices a team can have and stricter punishments for dangerous hits, have helped reassure parents, said Rickey Neaves, executive director of the Mississippi High School Activities Association."
" Nationwide, the number of boys playing 11-player football is still down 7.5% from its peak of 1,112,303 in 2008-09. Yet at all levels, football saw a bump last year. Attendance at college football games rose for the first time in eight years. The NFL boasted 82 of the top 100 most-viewed programs on American television in 2022, up from 75 a year earlier."
www.wsj.com
"... the sport has staged a surprising comeback. Turnout of boys for high school football rose 5.6% last year, according to recently released data by the National Federation of State High School Associations. While participation remains well below the sport’s peak about 15 years ago, its gains last year surpassed the post-Covid rebound of popular fall sports including boys soccer (3.2%) and girls’ volleyball (3.6%). Football also bested the 3% average increase across all high school sports from 2021 to 2022.
Several things are driving football’s turnaround, coaches and administrators say. Covid shutdowns made high school students and their parents hungry for social activities. Steps to prevent and manage concussions have reassured parents. And the NFL has put its colossal muscle behind promoting high school tackle and flag football.
“We’ve actually had a lot more support come back for football as a good, disciplined activity for teenagers,” said Matt Johnson, head coach at Mountain View High in Tucson, Ariz.""
"Prep football remains the most popular high school sport, with more than 1 million athletes, and its recent gains came across the political spectrum, with upticks in New York and Washington state as well as Alabama and Mississippi."
"Rules changes, such as limits on the number of full-contact practices a team can have and stricter punishments for dangerous hits, have helped reassure parents, said Rickey Neaves, executive director of the Mississippi High School Activities Association."
" Nationwide, the number of boys playing 11-player football is still down 7.5% from its peak of 1,112,303 in 2008-09. Yet at all levels, football saw a bump last year. Attendance at college football games rose for the first time in eight years. The NFL boasted 82 of the top 100 most-viewed programs on American television in 2022, up from 75 a year earlier."
High School Football Makes a Surprise Comeback
After years of declines, the number of players nationwide grew 5.6% last season, nearly twice the post-Covid rebound of other sports.
www.wsj.com
