comparison college high school football BY Itcon78 High School and College Football Since middle school, I have been playing the game of football, and IVe loved it ever since. Being a bigger kid, I always have played the offensive line and defensive line positions. These positions require the actions of blocking and tackling. I enjoyed blocking and tackling so playing the game was very fun for me. Throughout the years I have enjoyed working hard to make my performance better. Countless hours of practicing and lifting weights have been a big part of my life.
This game requires a lot of dedication, which is why I love it. When I reached the college football level I received a huge awakening. The differences between the two levels helped me learn more about the game of football. High school football in small towns like mine is a big deal. While I was growing up in Hugoton, Kansas, a town of about of about 4,000 people, the community was very supportive.
Many people in my community knew me because I was a standout in football. I was a captain my senior year of high school, so I received the opportunity to help lead my team.
At games and at practice, I tried to the of my best ability to motivate the younger players on my team to give it all they had. As a role player, I was expected to make big plays in the game. To an offensive and defensive lineman, big plays consist of making big time blocks for my team and getting off block to make tackles.
My team and coaches relied on me to do so. I loved the “close net” community my town had, because they were so supportive throughout my years there. Nonetheless, weightlifting and training in most high school programs is a big part of the game, more than it has been in the past.
In my high school, we lifted weights all through the summer, which “catered” the players who wanted to get better. We lso lifted weights throughout the school year because my school offered a weightlifting class as an elective. Many kids did not take weightlifting seriously in my school; they Just wanted an easy grade. Ever since my coach told me that I could move on to play college football, I was motivated to make myself better. I lifted weights every day. I also took all the conditioning seriously because I knew it would help me in the long run.
For about a year straight before I came to college I was in the weight room five times a week with running added to the schedule. Formerly, practices at my high school were not that bad after I got use to them. Starting late in the summer right before school started, we began two-a-days. These two-a- days lasted for a week. Having two practices in one day was pretty tough. Soreness was a big factor during these practices. Usually after every practice the yard sprints, full gassers and half gassers regularly. A gasser is running down and back the width of the field twice.
After the two-a-days ended practices didn’t seem so tough. The hard practice days during the season were on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. These were considered workdays by our coaches. Even though some days I didn’t feel like practicing, it helped me for games. Further more, high school football games were very exciting to me. I enjoyed playing alongside my friends, most of whom I had grown up with in Hugoton. During big games it seemed like the whole town came to support us. On game day, football players would wear our Jerseys to school. I enjoyed that very much.
Throughout the day people would grant us good luck ,and would tell us to beat our opponents that day. There was no better feeling than making a big play in front of my town. That feeling gave me great pride of being from Hugoton. The game level in high school depended on the opponent we had that week. If we had a good team the level was high and intense because of the good players they had. If we played a team that wasn’t so good, we would beat them by many points, so the level of intensity wasn’t so high. I made a lot of good memories playing high school football. The memories I made will never be forgotten.
When I signed my letter of intent to play football at Garden City Community College on February 2, 2013, I was ready to advance my knowledge of the game of football. Not long after I got here, I realized how many people in Garden City support our football team. Going out to eat with teammates and I to local restaurants people, ould ask us questions about our team. Since Garden City is a larger city than Hugoton it isn’t as “close net”, but during game days we had a lot of support. Playing with new players from all around Kansas and the United States was very new to me.
I made many new friends. Some of these friends I will remember for a long time. The talent and intensity was also very different to me because of how high it was in both aspects. I had to grow up fast when I got here. I got to Garden City in June, and almost immediately we began lifting weights. I had been following the workout plan they sent me prior to getting to the college. After the first day, I figured out how different weight lifting was in college than in high school. Everything was so quick in the weight room. Not that much break was allowed in between sets.
Everyone was moving around so quick. Our coach would walk around and yell at us to get it going. The high intensity in the weight room in contrast to high school was definitely new to me. The intense weight room sessions were tough, but I knew they would help me in the long run. After a few weeks of weightlifting, we began our fall camp. Before camp began however, everyone had to go through a conditioning test. The conditioning test consisted of two 300-yard shuttles a minute and a half apart. The average time of the two had to meet the qualification times the coaches had.
For the lineman positions, the time was fifty three seconds. The test was difficult but I passed it. Our fall camp consisted on two-a-days Just like in high school. I soon received a reality check that this was no longer high school, or anything close to it. The first big difference was lineman, so that was all I played. I was practicing with many players who were division one athletes, but did not have the grades to qualify, so they came to Junior ollege. I was use to being the best player on my high school team, but now everyone was good.
Everyone in college was the best player on their high school team. Fall camp lasted three weeks, and it was not easy. One on one drills, with players bigger than I have ever gone up against were tough. This experience however, helped me realize how hard I have to work to play at this level. When the season began, practices were not as tough. Just like in high school, Tuesdays and Wednesdays were workdays. I learned a lot of much needed technique throughout my experience in college football. On the contrary, college football games are also nothing like high school games.
Even though I wasn’t a starter my freshman year in college, I did experience some playing time. The speed of the game is the biggest difference. Playing with bigger and faster players each play is very important. If one player does not fulfill their Job, bad things can happen. College games are also taken very seriously because of the level of the game. The crowd is bigger and they cheer louder. If our team did something wrong, not only would our coaches let us know, so would the crowd. Winning a college football game was a great experience.
Knowing my team was better than another high skilled team is a good feeling. That feeling is unforgettable. As a result, the decision to play college football is very important to me. I have made my parents proud and that is a big accomplishment. The experience has been a rollercoaster. I believe my toughness level has gone up because of the beatings one takes in college football. That toughness will help a lot in life. I am very blessed to have experienced both high school and college football. Both levels have been and will always be a big part of my life. It’s the love of the game that keeps me going.
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