Football is a beautiful game. It is the worldly thing that I am most passionate about and excited by. When the Chiefs lost the Super Bowl I was more sad that meaningful football was over for 201 days (the amount of time until high school football in Missouri kicks off) than I was about the outcome of the game itself. In my life I have been fortunate to experience the game of football in many capacities at many levels.
So what I want to do here is investigate the varying levels and types of football and try to deduce which is the most pure. Now the word purity is defined as, “freedom from adulteration or contamination,” according to the Google machine. So I am trying to find at what level football is its most true to itself. Where football is played, “the way God intended it to be played.” I put a lot of thought into this, and while I suppose there must be some subjectivity present while putting this together, I tried to put a lot of thought into this and get it right.
The seven levels we are looking at are as follows in order of age of people that play them: Playground/backyard, junior high/youth, JV, high school, small college, DI college, and NFL. I will be ordering them from seven to one, seven being the least pure form of football and one being the most pure. Here we go.
7. NFL Football
I know that this will probably ruffle some feathers and everyone will cry bull malarkey from the start, but hear me out. Let me preface this by saying I love the NFL and have thoroughly enjoyed it for years. But keep in mind we are not looking for the best level of football, we are looking for the most pure.
Here’s the reality of the NFL, it has the best and worst of football. It has 80,000 screaming fans, millions of people watching, the best talent, the best coaching minds, and the biggest stages. That’s all wonderful. But it also has millions of dollars, greedy team owners, greedy agents, hot takes, and damning long-term consequences for those who play. If we are talking about the most adulteration and contamination of the game of football, look no further than the NFL.
6. Junior High/Youth Football
Now you may start to notice a theme here, but let me preface this by saying, I love junior high football. I am the proud coach of a junior high football team. It’s rewarding and fun, and it’s really wonderful when the players break through and do things well. But here is the reality, that breakthrough takes a long time. Until then any junior high, Pop Warner, peewee, or youth football can be somewhat arduous.
The entertainment value can come from blunders and funny moments as much or more than the quality of the football. This is not a criticism of youth, it’s just part of the process of learning to be a football player. It’s a necessary step along the path. But when you get down to it, very rarely will you watch a youth football game and think, “that is how the game is supposed to be played.” You are much more inclined to think what I usually think which is, “Wow, some of those boys are really tiny and some of them are grown men. This might be ugly.”
5. Division I College Football
Don’t get me wrong, I love college football. Okay. I won’t say it for the rest of them. It’s just implied that I love football at all levels. Anyway, college football is weird. And I felt that there needed to be a distinction between Division I and the other levels of college football. The best thing that DI has going for it is the product at the top is fairly incredible. When you get down to the end and the best teams are playing each other it can be football in its most beautiful and exciting form.
The issue with this level is that it is corrupted when you add the greatest corrupting factor known to mankind… money. At this level of football there are millions (maybe billions?) of dollars made off the product. The product is the student-athletes playing the game. The issue is that the human beings which are the product that sells do not see a dime of said money. I am not interested in making this a, “College Athletes Should Be Paid” article, but, they should at least be able to make money off of endorsements. The NCAA is run mostly by slimy crooks. They are at their slimiest when it comes to Division I football.
4. Junior Varsity Football
I have never been a part of a program large enough to have freshman level football but throw this in with JV for the purposes of this article. In terms of pure joy, I don’t think there is a level of football greater than JV. While it lacks in fan attendance, media coverage, and overall significance, it’s going to be a good time if you go about it the right way. Great effort, energy, and attitude will ensure that there will be an enjoyable experience for everyone involved. I have seen it as a player and coach. Perhaps it’s the lack of pressure, but the level of purity in JV football is near the top of the list.
Shout out to Pterodactyl Right.
3. Small College Football
This is certainly the pick where my bias has the greatest influence. As a proud Northwest Missouri State University Alum, the thought of Bearcat Stadium on a Saturday afternoon plays to my sentimental side. Probably the greatest reason for this bias is that I have grown up watching and going to the games of the most successful Division II football program of my lifetime.
It feels like I have to reach for any negatives of small college football. One is that the product among the bottom teams can be pretty bad. Second, on a similar note, is that the disparity in the product from the bottom and top teams, as well as different conferences around the country, can be astronomical.
But if you can suffer through the games where the Bearcats beat Lindenwood 3000 to 0, you’ll get a great value when a competitive team comes to town. It’s an atmosphere that simultaneously feels large and close-knit. The majority of players aren’t going to the next level, so there’s a feeling of finality that doesn’t exist as much with D-I football. Fans are close to the action, many of the students are familiar with at least a few players, the community support is unbelievable, all of which cause the games to feel somewhat like a family function. I love this level of football. Pure. #CatsBy90
2. Backyard/Playground Football
Near the top of the list of, “You don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone,” experiences of my life are backyard and playground football. Some of my best childhood memories come from playing football with my pals. Some stories:
1. When I was in 4th grade, after lunch we had recess with everyone from 3rd to 6th grade. Every day we’d line up against the fence and pick teams. Every day Thomas Shifflett and Josh Johnson, both 6th graders, would be the picking captains. Every day they would pick the exact same kids in the exact order they did the day before. The teams literally never changed. Then for about 20 minutes there were no friendships. You had brothers and you had enemies. The game was two hand touch that quickly turned into two hand shove. Beautiful days.
2. Probably around the same time (plus or minus a year) we had a lot of kids about my age living in my neighborhood. On a nice day we would all get together in someone’s yard (usually in my front yard that featured a nice concrete end zone that doubled as our driveway) and play full on tackle football. It was so much fun. Until Josh Johnson and I would get mad at each other and start fighting. Once the others got the scuffle broken up we’d all go home.
3. One of the best memories of my childhood came on a snowy day. School got called off, so naturally the gang convened to play football in the snow. The common thread of these stories is appearing to be Josh Johnson. For this particular story, we ended up in his backyard and took snow shovels to scoop the boundaries, end zones, and first down line. Then we played snow football until we were numb. Or maybe it was until Josh and I started fighting each other. I don’t really recall.
Pure and unadulterated. Just kids playing ball.
1. High School Football
I am no stranger to life under the Friday night lights. Perhaps I am biased on my selection for the most pure form of football, but I am also right. High school football, more than any other form of football, captures the soul of a person. I believe that it is difficult to quantify or put into words but the atmosphere of a high school football game has subtleties that other levels do not possess. I think most of these subtleties are rooted in the beautiful and tragic reality that everyone involved has more riding on the game than they’d care to admit. What this does is add the right amount of pressure to make a meaningless game mean the world.
Greater than this is the impact that I know this level of football can have on those playing it. It is possible at all levels, but the high school years are a young man’s most formative. I like to say, football ain’t life, but there’s a lot of life in football. You can learn a lot about how to be a good and productive person through this game. I think that is the reason I love this level most, and the thing that makes it most pure. There is more real value in high school football than any other level. It is the beauty of beauties. The purest of pure.
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