football

[homeboy7600]

I'm trying out for varsity starting wide receiver or tight end for my high school. Anyone have any tips on how to become a better ball catcher or how to improve my chances of getting on the team? Running Routes? Making Blocks? Also, i'm 5'8' (kinda short, i know) and 140 with about 11% body fat. Physically what can i do to improve myself for either position?

[d'Anconia]

Eh you might be a bit short for receiver/tight end at your height. Have you looked into defensive back?

Honestly if you're going for varsity you will want to put on some pounds. I think most of us here would recommend that you just lift some heavy weights and eat big so you can get both bigger and stronger.

Anyway on my high school team the biggest thing for the receivers was to a.) not be afraid of the hit that often comes once you've caught the ball and b.) to actually catch the ball. I'd recommend buying a couple pairs of receiver gloves since those make it quite a bit easier to catch if your hands aren't those of Jerry Rice.

Obviously making blocks is another biggie. Learn to go in for the block and watch the defender's hips to see if he is going to try to dodge your block either way. Learn to read where he's going to go and adjust your pattern so you can still lay a nice block on him (often you can blindside for a big hit).

In general though I think your biggest goal should be to gain as much weight as possible, and be open to possible position changes. BTW are you going to be a junior or senior next season.

[BigRic]

Depends on your speed and agility but I'd suggest, Receiver, Cornerback or Runningback. Either way what was said above is probably best, gain weight and get faster.

[midee1]

I think as they said above is about right. WR/TE would probably be a stretch at your height. RB/CB is doable. The star RB/DB from my sons school started out his Freshman year at 5'7 and 160lbs. He finished his senior year at 5'9" and about 190lbs but he was a great RB (broke every school record and his name is in the state record books many times) and an even better DB. He was selected to play in the KY/TN all star game last year at DB. Did a great job against a 6'3" WR.

Just dug up some information on him. He was 6th in the state in points scored right behind Shaun Alexander(Seahawks)

Eat and lift. It will do wonders for ya.

[BilltheButcher]

Go talk to the Varsity coach. Ask him if there is a lifting program for the summer or if the team is going to be working out together in the off season. If your school doesn't have a gym or work out program, start one at the local gym, go in there and ask the owner for a discount if you bring in a bunch of guys. Second, find out what summer camps your coach will be coaching at. Try and go to those camps and impress him there. Thord, when triples and doubles come in the summer, hustle and be positive. If you are constantly hustling, there is no way a coach can cut you.

As for the size question -- its not the size of the dog in the fight, but the size of the fight in the dog. For a HS WR your height is fine. Guy I played with was 5'8" and he played D2 ball in college. He did run a 4.5 40 and was very quick. Have you never played FB and all of a sudden you want to go to Varsity? Do they have freshmen or JV ball or are you to old? Anyways, always hustle, remember Rudy.

[Shao-LiN]

Really depends...there's a 5'8" 160 pound wideout in the NFL, I believe. If you're good at it, you're good at it.

[DeHartD]

Steve Smith of the Panthers is only 5'9" and he's one of the best in the NFL. You need strength and SPEED/QUICKNESS. High school teams aren't as big as college, you can definitely play high school WR at 5'8" but you HAVE to bulk up and get good with your hands. Play basketball, do a lot of dribbling... use your opposite hand to use a fork, toothbrush, open doors, etc... it will definitely help you. If I were you I'd try WR and DB see which one is your best fit. But don't worry about your height, work on bulking/strengthening your entire body (need a great vertical jump and a strong upper body since you're vertically challenged Good luck man

[BigCorey75]

speed speed and more speed, at your height, speed is your best bet in getting on the field, as far as catching just have someone throw you passes and practice catching


but like i said worry about speed

[nhlfan]

you may not be done growing, so no worries on the height. its important now that you put on mass and get stronger.

[Guido]

Antwaan Randle-El is only 5'9 and has played/plays QB, WR, and Kick Returner. If you have the speed, agility, and toughness there is no reason you can't be successful. Gain some weight and strength, though. It will help your durability and ability to block.

[homeboy7600]

Thanks to all of you for your help and words of encouragement. But i still have a few general questions. You guy's say that i need to be strong and fast, but how strong and fast? How fast do i need to be able to run? and how strong do i need to be? (how much should i weigh and with what body fat %?)

[diesel_dan]

Thanks to all of you for your help and words of encouragement. But i still have a few general questions. You guy's say that i need to be strong and fast, but how strong and fast? How fast do i need to be able to run? and how strong do i need to be? (how much should i weigh and with what body fat %?)

The stronger, the better. The faster, the better. Just get as strong and as fast as you can. Durning football you don't really need to be worried about what bf% you should be. You just need to eat as much as you can. Your going to be doing a lot of running so your body will need as much food as it can get to supply you with energy and to maintain your muscle.

[Fenrir]

you foreigners and your crazy sports! lol, my mate has moved from Canada to Australia, and tried explaining Canadian footy to me, so i showed him Aussie Rules!

[Meat_Head]

Sprints will help you, along with lots of heavy compound liftings as other have suggested.

Work on being explosive and agile, lateral movement and whatnot. Cross training is very effective for this, for example raquetball and basketball can make you very agile and quick w/ lateral movement, and that'll come in handy on the football field.

Also run routes frequently and have a QB throw alot of passes at you. You may even want to have him throw some off or bad passes, as it'll train you to compensate as a reciever and get softer hands.

[BigRic]

Since you're still in High school I'd say a 4.5-4.4 forty if you want to continue playing to college, and a bench press of 185x15-20 would be excellent. short shuttle of 4.0-4.2 and a pro-agility(L-drill) of 7.0+-.3 would be excellent. a 9'6" broadjump is pretty good, and anything over 34 inches in the vertical is good as well.

[Relentless]

If you want to improve as a receiver, you need to catch more balls. Period.
Do some research about the way Jerry Rice trained/practiced. Dude would do things like go out and catch 50 high balls, 50 low balls, etc. after everyone else was done practicing.

This brings up another good point: FUNDAMENTALS.
Find someone that can teach you the fundamentals of the position(s) you want to try out for. For a WR, this would be catching. It sounds simple, but good coaches will train you in the most effective way to extend, catch, and secure the ball after every reception. Ditto for running, blocking, going into and out of breaks, etc. Hip position and shoulder angle counts. If nothing else, find someone that plays varsity and ask for their help.

fatrb38 is right about gloves; I have small hands and I play year-round in Canada, so catching balls in the cold and wet is always fun... I wear Magnigrip Threats (http://www.nike.com/nikegridiron/ind...uipment,GF0029) and they help tremendously.

[Meat_Head]

:withstupi

I think its the ability to compensate for a quarterback's innaccuracy that makes a truely great reciever, so it makes sense to catch as many balls as possible in as many situations as possible.