I have always loved to watch football, and this year I was lucky enough to play for the Emporia Middle School Football Team. I have learned lots of things about football when I played this season. I am going to share some of the things that I learned while playing football.

1. Get Low When Tackling

Always make sure to tackle at the waist or lower. The waist is our center of gravity. If you can, disrupt the center of gravity for who you are tackling. If you can’t tackle at the waist then try to aim yourself fire for their knees. When you tackle their knees they can’t bend them, causing them to fall or very slowly hop. If you can’t tackle the knees or waist, try the feet. This will make it so they can not lift up their feet to run, causing them to fall. If you try to tackle anywhere above the waist they will have the advantage. They will have the advantage because they will have already built a lot more momentum than you because they are running the ball or running to catch it, while you are standing still. But, if you are running, you will most likely be evenly matched or you will have the upper hand. If you are running with enough speed you might be able to tackle them anywhere and still cause them to fall.

2. Focus On Your position

In Football, you are assigned a specific job. For example, I am a Tackle. What I do is I would either protect the Quarterback when he is passing or I would “climb” to the linebackers and block them when the Quarterback, Running Back, or Full back run with the ball. I would only focus on what I’m doing because if I worry about too many positions then I would have no idea on what to do for my position.

3. Stance

Your stance is almost everything that you need to succeed in your position. If you have a good stance you will feel a lot more comfortable while moving. Your stance can also increase your momentum. For example, while playing tackle you are on the ground because it gives you more space to burst into action. As linebacker you need to be in about a squat stance. This helps you tackle by being lower.

4. Understand Plays

If a team that you’re playing against keeps throwing the ball, then they are most likely going to switch it up in the second half, and vice versa. If the Wide Receivers and the Tight End are on one side of the field, then they will most likely be throwing the ball to them. Or if the Tight End is on the line then they might be doing a Tight End dump or they are just going to block with the line. If they are blocking then the Quarterback might be throwing the ball.

5. Weights

You should always make sure to go to do weights if you are playing football. It will give you a big advantage over all the other players. You will be a lot bigger and stronger. You will also be able to run faster which is a very important part of football.

In conclusion, you should always try to stay fit, learn your opponent, practice your stance, practice your position and aim for the bottom half when tackling. In my opinion, this will greatly improve your football skills.