Play up and sit or play down and play

dvo45
Senior Member

Posts: 1,238

Play up and sit or play down and play Jul 16, 2008 9:58:05 GMT -6

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Post by dvo45 on Jul 16, 2008 9:58:05 GMT -6

Question for the board as the season rapidly approaches:

Is it better for a kid to play up a level and be a back up

OR

Is it better for a kid to play down a level and start

In my situation, at the middle school level we have a "Varsity" and a "Junior Varsity".

Varsity is made up of most if not all 8th grade kids.

Junior Varsity is made up of most if not all 7th grade kids.

We have a few 8th graders that are more than likely going to sit at the Varsity level but could get big minutes on the JV level...conversely we have 3-4 kids 7th graders that could run with the Varsity-but not start-but would be the 'go to' guys on the JV.

So, how would the board handle it?

Coach Huey
Administrator

Board Founder & CEO

High School Athletic Director & Head Football Coach (TX)

Posts: 10,782

Play up and sit or play down and play Jul 16, 2008 12:23:07 GMT -6

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Post by Coach Huey on Jul 16, 2008 12:23:07 GMT -6

here is how we approach it at the high school level...

if a sophomore won't play at least 50% of the time, then he plays down (40% for a junior). would rather have the kid playing (and, thus, developing game skills) rather than sitting. but, we also coach all our kids 9-12 as one cohesive staff so we will be coaching the kid during practice.

coachtabales
Freshmen Member

Posts: 65

Play up and sit or play down and play Jul 17, 2008 11:39:50 GMT -6

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Post by coachtabales on Jul 17, 2008 11:39:50 GMT -6

Following Coach Huey's lead, here is how we approach it at the Pop Warner (Youth) level...

If he can start by keeping him down, then keep him down. At some point he will "have" to move up by rule. In the meantime, with good coaching and good playing time, he will get better and probably be able to handle the bigger kids later on with more confidence. That said, I like the percentage of playing time idea as well. I never thought of that and will be looking into it and how our decisions are made.

There is more to life than just football... but not much.

tiger46
Junior Member

Posts: 438

Play up and sit or play down and play Jul 18, 2008 17:33:29 GMT -6

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Post by tiger46 on Jul 18, 2008 17:33:29 GMT -6

I had to make that decision for myself when I was in jr. high. I was good enough to sit the bench on the 7th grade 'A' team or, play on the 7th grade 'B' team. I sat the bench for one 'A' team game. After that I asked to be placed on the 'B' team.
Luckily, playing down was the best decision I could've made. I played CB. The 'B' team DB coach wasn't really part of the coaches' clique. So, he never got to move up or coach anyone except the castoff DB's. Turns out, he was the best DB coach in the entire coaching program, imo- and, that included the HS varsity staff.