Tackle football is one of the most rewarding youth sports on the planet but it requires dedication from both the players and the parents. Practices will begin end July, the hottest time of the year.  Expect to practice 4-5 times a week for 2.5 hours per day (max.) for 10 hours of required minimum conditioning for the first week before you can even put on pads (Pop Warner rule). Once conditioned, practice in full pads begins with 2.5 hours per day (max.), 4-5 days per week (max. 10 hours per week- Pop Warner rule) for an entire month before the first game. Football is the ultimate team sport with a lot of "moving parts" to learn in a short amount of time, so attendance at ALL practices in August is mandatory. Do not plan any vacation time during this time. Once school starts, Attendance is mandatory at ALL other practices in order to participate fully. Each child plays an important role on the team and will quickly fall behind if practices are missed.

AGE - AGE IS BASED ON HOW OLD YOUR CHILD WILL BE AS OF 7/31/2025. In 2025 we are proceeding with three age brackets including 8U, 10U, and 12U divisions. See below details.

Practices will begin August 1st, West Putnam Pop Warner requires that players attend ALL practices prior to schools starting. Past experience has proven that this will ensure each player's safety and development in the succeeding weeks. Pop Warner mandates a given number of hours for conditioning and practice before players can put on their pads or participate in a game/scrimmage.

In accordance with Pop Warner rules, players will be practicing 4-5 times each week (a week is defined as Mon - Sun) up to a max of 2.5 hrs per day (break time does not count against these hours.) It is difficult for players missing any of these practices to "catch up" to the rest of the team in terms of development and understanding. It also places an unnecessary burden on the coaching volunteers and takes away training and development time from the players that did attend. Please do not schedule anything in August (vacations, day camps or other sports) because this will likely conflict with your ability to attend ALL practices. If you are unable to make this commitment, please do not sign up. If you have questions concerning this, contact us.

For safety and development reasons, it is expected and required that each player attend ALL practices unless they are ill or have a required school event. After Labor Day, actual weekly practice time will drop from 10 hours per week to 6 hours per week max. (Week is defined as Mon - Sun), and the max. drops to 2 hrs practice each day (break time does not count against each practice) - Pop Warner rules. Games usually take place on Saturday.

When the season begins, we will play our home games at Interlachen High School Stadium, and away games on fields throughout North Florida. Regular season games are played on Saturdays with the season typically beginning on Labor Day weekend (Saturday, August 30 this year), and running through the end of October. Game times and locations are assigned by the Putnam Athletic League organization. The schedule usually comes out just before the first game is to be played and is often changed during the season due to facility availability. West Putnam Pop Warner has no control over the schedule - we encourage our teams to be flexible. Playoffs for football will begin the week following the regular season championship and teams that qualify can potentially run through the first week in December (National Championships in Orlando, FL).

Registration does NOT include socks, cleats, and mouthguard. West Putnam Pop Warner has a mandatory equipment day in July (see Calendar/Dates) where players will be sized and fitted for all practice and game equipment.

There will be NO REFUNDS given after registration closes.

Competitive football and cheerleading provide many benefits to young athletes such as self-discipline, good sportsmanship, time management skills and physical fitness. Competition allows the players and cheerleaders to experience both success and defeat in a positive environment. Parents, while not participants on their child's team, contribute to the success of both the child and the team. If you would like to coach, please sign up when you register- we are always looking for good coaches. Each home game also requires volunteers from your team to track the number of plays each player has played, run the down marker/ chains, announce, spot, and run the score clock. If you are a leader, please consider becoming a team mom or spirit mom. Our league runs on volunteers , so we encourage you to look for a way to volunteer and/or offer to help your coaches and team mom! You can sign up during the registration process.

West Putnam Pop Warner will make every attempt to field the appropriate number of teams that will allow everyone who has registered an opportunity to play. There are a number of constraints that will be used to determine how many teams we will have, such as field availability, but it is primarily dependent on seating a qualified coaching staff to lead each team. If we are unable to field a team once you have registered, you will be given a full refund. There will be NO REFUNDS given after team formation.

West Putnam Pop Warner football parents assist the coaches by volunteering to serve as team or spirit mom. When coaches have important information that needs to be shared with each family in a timely manner, they contact their team mom who organize a email list to make sure each family is contacted. These parent-volunteers also assist the coaches in weekly communication / events and organizing fun activities and parties. If you are interested in the position of team or spirit mom, you can sign up during the registration process and by sending an e-mail to [email protected]! Often times, the head coach does not know every player or parent and has to do the recruiting of the team and spirit mom on his/her own.