The countdown is on for high school football season.
Games begin at the beginning of September. This week, coaches from all over the state are in Fort Worth for the 81st annual Texas High School Coaches Association Convention and Coaching School.
An estimated 12,000 to 13,000 people are expected to attend.
One of the big topics this year is the change to the way football teams can practice. The University Interscholastic League's Legislative Council passed new measures recommended by the UIL Medical Advisory Committee related to student health and safety.
Full-contact practice will be limited to 90 minutes per athlete per week during the regular and postseason. For the purposes of the rule, full contact is defined as football drills or live game simulations where live action occurs.
Live action is contact at game speed where players execute full tackles at a competitive pace taking players to the ground.
The League will also require a new acknowledgement form with information and resources related to sudden cardiac arrest. The sudden cardiac arrest awareness form will require a signature from a parent or guardian of each student-athlete prior to participation in a UIL event.
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In addition, the Legislative Council voted to require cheerleading participants to comply with Chapter 38 subchapter D of the Texas Education Code as it pertains to prevention, treatment and oversight of concussions. Coaches and sponsors for cheerleading will be required to undergo specific training about safety guidelines for cheer as well as other programs that have the goal of minimizing the risks associated with the activity.
The new rules go into effect Aug. 1.
