The latest "active participation numbers" for New Jersey high school football, which were released in August, show a "drastic statewide decline for the second consecutive year," according to Zach Schonbrun of the N.Y. TIMES. These numbers prompt the question for high school coaches, "Where have all the players gone?" The '17 New Jersey high school football season "featured nearly 1,700 fewer players" than '16 (-6.8%). Only three other states -- Colorado, Montana and Oklahoma -- had "steeper drops." Many coaches and administrators have said that the "primary reason New Jersey's proud high school football tradition is plunging toward irrelevancy is the growing concern about head injuries." Football "remains the nation's most popular sport" for boys 14-17, but since '09, when a record 1.14 million athletes participated in 11-player high school football, "interest has fallen." Football drew 1.03 million participants in the U.S. in '17. The drop in football participation in New Jersey was "far greater than for other sports." Women's soccer had the "second-biggest decline," losing 577 players from '16 to '17 (-3.8%). Men's soccer participation dropped by 979 players (-0.6%). In '18, it "appears the outlook for football is even bleaker" as students' interests are "shifting toward activities like soccer and basketball, the fastest-growing sport" in New Jersey. Coaches said football's safety concerns "remain the primary cause of the shift" (N.Y. TIMES, 10/29).
