Spring football in your state?

[Mav]

I was a clinic in Boston this past weekend and whenever a new or complex topic was being discussed, it seemed someone would always comment 'well they have the time to coach the kids. They're allowed to have spring practice.

I'd be interested to know which states have spring football. I heard many southern states allow it. Is it full contact? 7 on 7?

[thurman]

Here in Louisiana we are allowed like 15 days of full contact practice.. Maybe 13 full and 2 non-full.. Im not 100% sure on that.. We then are allowed to have a scrimmage.. Can be 2 or 3.. maybe even 4 team scrimmage..

They are having a meeting this week about doing away with spring practice. I personally do not think it will pass. The smaller schools are hurt more than the big schools by it.. Bigger schools have enough kids to go around where the smaller ones all of the athletes pretty much play all of the sports.. So the kids have to go right from baseball or track into football..

We do 7 on 7 during the summer.

[information]

Here in Texas...

We have 30 days to get in 15 Practices witha Scrimmage at the end vs Ourselves. Its great way to have a handle on what you got for next year.

7 on 7 Have Tournments which Qualify you for the State Tournament as well as 7 on 7 leagues...it is possible to play on most weeknights if you wanted to here in the Houston Area.

As for more time.....From my experience, I have coached in another state, there is more pressure to win now here in Texas or you are gone where in other states you might have 5-7 years before they "ask" you to leave.

Just my 2 cents....

[splitricky5]

No contact for more than ten days total with the use of a football during the off-season in Ohio. And that is with nothing more than a helmet. Also, any 7on7 that the coaches attend counts toward those ten days, so when you guys talk about 7on7 leagues, I just shake my head. Most programs use their ten days as a mini camp in June before doubles.

[aztec]

California-

We have 15 days of Spring Practice. We do have overlap with sports in the playoffs and in some years not had some starters during Spring. It is short and shirts only. No pads or helmets. We normally practice for 4 weeks with no practice on fridays. We have memorial day in there so it works out to be 4,3,4,4 each week with a spring game at the end.

Then we finish up school and and start our summer practices. Summers are Mon thru Thurs. Lifting, field work with 7 on 7 games vs other schools every thursday for 5-6 weeks.

[qbguru]

no spring practice allowed at all here in Michigan. what a great advantage that would be to have it.
The problem we run into here, is that many schools have "football tech" classes in the 2nd semester and many schools do not. As you can see, this poses a huge disadvantage for the schools that do not have it. The schools that have the class can have their whole offense and defense installed by the time they hit the field in the summer. Those of us that don't have it are left to play catch up!

[Mav]

information said:

Here in Texas...
7 on 7 Have Tournments which Qualify you for the State Tournament as well as 7 on 7 leagues...it is possible to play on most weeknights if you wanted to here in the Houston Area.

In Texas you're allowed to coach your players in 7on7 leauges, during the off season? Is there restictions on summer practices or do they consider 7on7 teams separate from your HS team.

[dmp225]

no scrimmages, no pads, just helmets for safety...you would think we are allowed more in the state of PA

[Mav]

dmp225 said:

no scrimmages, no pads, just helmets for safety...you would think we are allowed more in the state of PA

Does PA have a limit on the number of days? Can you practice in the summer?

[Mav]

aztec said:

California-

We have 15 days of Spring Practice. We do have overlap with sports in the playoffs and in some years not had some starters during Spring. It is short and shirts only. No pads or helmets. We normally practice for 4 weeks with no practice on fridays. We have memorial day in there so it works out to be 4,3,4,4 each week with a spring game at the end.

Then we finish up school and and start our summer practices. Summers are Mon thru Thurs. Lifting, field work with 7 on 7 games vs other schools every thursday for 5-6 weeks.

Interesting - Cal and Texas have a full season before the real season. What % of your players are involved? Must be tougher for the linemen... not being in the 7on7 games.

[bigdaddyd]

We do spring practice (only shorts and cleats, not full pads). Our Section gives us 10 practices which we can call mandatory. We schedule it in the middle of May runs until June.

This is the time when we really start to emphasize our offense and defense as well as 7 0n 7.

I'm in Northern Cali.

[spreadjet31]

Maine- New last year. After the end of the school year (mid June) teams are allowed to have 6 non-contact practices before the 2-week "hands off" period before the pre-season starts in mid August. So we basically have6 weeks to have 6 practices. The only other contact we have with our players is a 1 day 7 on 7 tourney put on by the Bates College coaching staff.

[thurman]

We also do the 7 on 7 pretty regularly.. We usually play every Tues and Thurs.. then we go to 3 or 4 tournaments.. Most of the colleges around here will have tournaments.. People like Evangel go off to national tournaments..

We are allowed to coach.. but we do not practice.. we just show up and play.. coach during the games.. But you could practice during the summer if you want..

[phantom]

In Virginia we don't have spring practice. We are allowed to have a camp. No pads or helmets. We have to charge and we have to allow any kids in who want to come. There is no rule about how much we have to charge or that we have to publicize. We charge $1 for our two week camp. We have had kids from other schools show up but we think that was to see if we'd allow them in and coach them. We did and they stopped coming after a couple of days.

[pegleg]

In Texas you're allowed to coach your players in 7on7 leauges, during the off season? Is there restictions on summer practices or do they consider 7on7 teams separate from your HS team.

can't "coach" kids in 7 on 7, although all coaches attend.

if you know another staff near by, you can have "closed" 7 on 7 and coach the hell outta them. this is still illegal but happens a lot. only way to get in trouble is if someone turns you in. so if 2 or 3 teams agree to coach you won'i get turned in.

don't ya love loop holes?

Holla

[donaldduck]

Fellow Texans, don't forget that only 4A and 5A get spring ball. 3A and below do not.

[NCcoach]

North Carolina

We are not allowed contact in the spring but we can coach "skills" all spring, no limits. 7 on 7 is in the summer for us. Of course we work on 7 on 7 "skills" all spring, but competing against other teams happen during the summer.

South Carolina

2 week spring football. They run it like Louisiana does.

[kennywayne]

Oklahoma-- We get 10 days of full contact for the first time this spring. previously only none contact practices were allowed.

[jimbohale]

Georgia - 2 weeks practice including a team scrimmage at the end of the 2 weeks. Usually starts around the 1st or 2nd week in May.

Summer Pass Leagues (June-July) are big down here and alot of different schools compete...it is basically skeleton with just helmets and cleats and it is two hand touch. Really gives coaches a chance to work with their receivers/qbs though.

[tye2021]

Florida,
When i was in highschool in Pensacola, Florida we had spring practice for 30 days 1 week Helemts shorts 3 weeks full contact. At the end of the month we held a spring Jamberee. All the schools in the area scrimmaged on one field. Every team played two different teams, 1 team a quarter. It was great because you had all of the local highschool teams, student bodies in one location. And I can't remember one negative instance.

[coachdawhip]

Georgia - Spring ball

and we can coach them as much as we want in the summer aftyer spring practice as long as we don't hit or put on pads.

[iecoach]

In southern California I don't think our 7 on 7 is as intense as it is in Texas. We have tournaments out here but no league or state tournaments. We use it as a teaching fundamental as we are allowed to coach during those games. During the summer our lineman will also meet and do line skills while the skill guys compete in 7 on 7.

[runtheball86]

Connecticut = 10 days .... 5 without pads, 5 with pads ... contact is allowed.

[Coach Shane]

In So. California a lot of Passing Leagues and Tournaments have weight lifting competitions for the linemen.

This maked it fun for the whole team.

[Coach Shane]

In So. California a lot of Passing Leagues and Tournaments have weight lifting competitions for the linemen.

This makes it fun for the whole team.

As far as Intense I would not agree with Iecoach. I have had Players end their carreers going all out and having freak accidents due to 7 on 7

[utchuckd]

Tennessee- We have 15 days to get 10 practices in, plus 1 or 2 scrimmages (I think it's 2). All full pads. Over the summer we have 7-on-7 games and tournaments, coached by us, and it's pretty much however many you want to schedule. We have a 2 week dead period the week before and the week of July 4th where we can have no contact.

[airman]

none in wisconsin. summer contact is strickly weight traning and conditioning. if you get caught coaching your players in the summer, it is a lifetime ban.

boy it would be nice to have spring practice. get all the skills and drills done.

[ac]

Arizona

We are allowed three weeks in May, but for most schools the third week is finals (especially in Tucson). So we really get in 10 max. days in shorts and shirts and only footballs allowed.

We have finals week off and then begin June which is time for all the 7 on 7 leagues to play.

[oguru]

Airman,
In Wisconsin we are allowed five days of contact with our players, during the summer. This was a new rule last year. I believe it if five days, it may be more.
Of course I am not sure if seven on seven count or not. As one school had a three day mini amp,and then was in three different 7 on 7 leaguies which equalled six days.
But it is legal in Wisconsin. The WFCA and WIAA allowed last year for the first time

[airman]

oguru said:

Airman,
In Wisconsin we are allowed five days of contact with our players, during the summer. This was a new rule last year. I believe it if five days, it may be more.
Of course I am not sure if seven on seven count or not. As one school had a three day mini amp,and then was in three different 7 on 7 leaguies which equalled six days.
But it is legal in Wisconsin. The WFCA and WIAA allowed last year for the first time

but you cannot really do anything. basically it was set up to end the previous rule. in wi you could not coach your kid at a camp. if a kid from your school was at the camp, you could not coach him. it is a odd rule but this contact rule changed this.

the contact rule was put in place for this and not really to have mini camps. however, since the rule was not that clear, it is allowed.

you cannot wear pads or helmets. basically you can run around and that is about it. some coaches are not even doing anything.

you will never get spring practice in wi however. the wiaa is anti football. the state is and forever will be a basketball sate. football playoffs started back in 1976 so they are only 30yrs old.

basketball tourny is 100 + yrs old. also the wiaa still dreams of 3 sport athletes. it would hurt the rural towns who depend on kids to play baseball and track.

7 on 7 is not that big in wisconsin. you can go to all the 7 on 7you want, a coach just cannot be there. however you can get some booster to handle it.

it is actually 4 days of contact. it might be 5 here soon. but the basketball coaches are fighting it. see basketball coaches have long been able to cheat with inthe rules. they can open the gym, but they are not supposed to coach. however most sit in the stands and well, you guess it, they coach. not overtly. they just ask jimmy to come over, the coach makes small talk, then tells jimmy what he needs to do and what the others need to do.