What high school football rules and safety guidelines do I need to know as a varsity player (grades 9-12, ages 14-18)? Equipment, new rules, illegal hits, celebrations, concussions, heat and lightning.
Your head coach has to confirm before every game that all players are legally equipped, and officials enforce it.
Tooth and mouth protector
Worn properly
Not allowed: jewelry, tinted visors, eye shade that isn't legal, bands on the upper arm, neck or legs, non-conforming adornments such as towels, and any camera or microphone.
Home jerseys must all be the same dark color(s) clearly contrasting with white.
From the 2027 season (Rule 1-5-2d), yes. Arm sleeves, attached or unattached, that are made to enhance contact with the ball or an opponent must meet the SFIA specification when manufactured and carry a permanent, visible, legible SFIA seal on the outside.
The requirement isn't in effect for the 2026 season. If you're buying grip-style sleeves now, look for the SFIA seal so they'll still be legal in 2027.
No. New for 2026 (Rule 9-4-7): the ban on slapping an opponent's head now applies to all players, on offense and defense. The rule used to cover only defensive players slapping a blocker's head; the NFHS removed "defensive" and "blocker's" from the wording.
It's an illegal personal contact foul: 15 yards.
Under Rule 9-4-3p (added in 2025), you can't initiate forceful contact against a defenseless receiver unless the contact is:
Penalty: 15-yard personal foul. If the official rules it flagrant, you're also disqualified.
A defenseless player is one who's especially vulnerable because of their position or focus: passers, receivers, sliding runners and players blocked from the blind side. They stay defenseless until they can protect themselves. Play the ball, or wrap up and tackle.
Sportsmanship was a 2025 NFHS point of emphasis, and flagrant and unsportsmanlike fouls are a 2026 point of emphasis.
Officials have been told to penalize flagrant and unsportsmanlike acts when they happen.
Tell a coach or athletic trainer right away, and stop playing. Under NFHS rules, any player showing signs, symptoms or behaviors consistent with a concussion must be removed from the game immediately and can't return until cleared by an appropriate health-care professional.
Symptoms to speak up about (CDC HEADS UP):
Get emergency help for a headache that gets worse, repeated vomiting, slurred speech, weakness or numbness, seizures, increasing confusion, one pupil larger than the other, or passing out.
Symptoms can show up hours or days later and are usually worst 1-2 days after the injury, so keep reporting them even after you leave the field.
The NATA-led Inter-Association Task Force guidelines for secondary school athletes set a 14-day heat-acclimatization period at the start of preseason. Many state associations have adopted their own versions, so the exact schedule can vary by state.
| Days | Practice limits | Football equipment |
|---|---|---|
| 1-2 | One practice a day, max 3 hours | Helmet only |
| 3-5 | One practice a day, max 3 hours | Helmet and shoulder pads; sleds and dummies allowed |
| 6-14 | Double-practice days allowed | Full pads; full-contact drills can begin on day 6 |
Under the NFHS Sports Medicine Advisory Committee's lightning guidelines:
The guidelines call for schools to identify safe shelter areas in advance and to tell athletes the lightning policy at the start of the season.