Middle school football is over! Well almost, we have one make-up game left to be played on Monday. Five of my travel team boys played football this fall. Coordinating baseball practices around their football schedules was a challenge, but IMO it was worth it.
It was a great experience for my son who had never played before. He had always wanted to play. In fact, I had actually signed him up twice for rec football, but at the last second his mother said "NO!". This year was different. For whatever reason she relented and allowed him to play. She refused to go to the games, but she let him play nonetheless. He loved every minute of it even with the added workload of playing two sports. He also just received his report card and made the Honor roll. In fact, 4 of my 5 football/baseball players made the Honor roll. Good grades is something that I stress for all of my ball players.
I had one goal for his participation in football and it was to increase his speed. While I can "make" him run sprints during our baseball workouts it simply isn't the same as working out with the football team. I could get him to run a few sprints, but it was becoming increasingly difficult to really push him. Amazingly, while in the atmosphere of 40 kids in pads running for the majority of practice he never once complained. Sprint, sprint, sprint! It was awesome watching his speed increase throuhout the season. He noticed it as well, so the season was a success!
Only six 7th graders made the middle school football team and five of them were "mine". That was also very rewarding.
Sorry I missed this earlier but great picture Ross. We did the football/baseball last fall too and it's a grind like no other so this year he opted strictly for football. Last year though he had a similar story; was one of 4 7th graders allowed to play for the 8th grade team (68 players overall) and he started both ways (OLB/WR) and played Special Teams as well. Same thing this year too.
They were 6-1 on the year and the only loss was the very first game and the score was 6-0. He ended up with about 15 receptions, 10 for TDs. I don't think he ever missed anything within reach. On D he had about 25 sacks, 3 blocked punts, 2 pass knockdowns and numerous tackles for a loss. I stressed the "about" part because I listed the stats off the top of my head but he never compiled them and was actually somewhat modest about them. His main drive offensively was to score more TDs than his teammate (a RB) and since they ran most of the time, my son made the most of his opportunities when he got them.
***************************** "Hey dad.......wanna have a catch?"
Posts: 2769 | Location: NE Ohio | Registered: January 10, 2004
On our 2007 11U team, we have 7 players playing at four different levels of hockey and another two playing Rep basketball. Hockey pervades from late August until the end of March. In scheduling for indoor sessions beginning in January (our season starts in early May), the only option seems to be later Sunday evening - even that is a conflict on tournament weekends.
My son has actually continued baseball with fall ball and indoor training before Winter Nationals in Florida. He has four sessions of basketball a week and he is rabid about squash (we are there about four to five days a week. One thing I have noticed about the squash is the improved focus and concentration with hitting. After a few weeks of squash, when he goes to hit the ping pong balls with a broomstick, he can hit at will. It is also dramatically improving his fitness.
He lost interest in hockey at 6, having been on skates since before two years old. Started playing indoors with baseball the fall he was seven and things progressed from there.
This is one exciting baseball year for him. He will be playing in Gainesville in another three weeks with Boys of Baseball and then Bucky Dent camp at March Break.
I grew up in upstate NY and was on skates from two years old, played hockey every day as soon as the ponds froze over until the ice melted in the spring. I played college hockey and dreamed of the day my boys would play ice hockey. Moved to SC and that ended that dream! I sure love that sport.
