What size football should I be kicking?

When we hold our field goal kicking clinics in the Atlanta area, we meet new kickers of all ages.

Our youngest was in the 4th grade (yes, grade school), but many are wrapping up their 8th grade year and preparing to transition into high school soon.

One of questions these kickers don’t even realize ‘should be’ a question for them is ‘what size football should I be kicking?’

This middle school to high school transition in football can be an interesting time if you are a kicker because depending on what grade you are in, you may be practicing your kicking sessions with the wrong football!

Imagine working out all off season (which is better than NOT kicking by the way) with one size football, say, a ‘Junior’ size. Then, as you enter the summer you realize to your shock and horror that you’ll be kicking a ‘Youth’ size football? Why does this matter?

In short, on the first day you kick in front of the coach to make that all important impression, you won’t be kicking the footballs you are used to! You will actually be kicking a slightly larger, longer, heavier ball. Sure, you can handle it physically, but it’s the mental part we are concerned about.

In kicking, the brain is half the battle (and for older kickers nearly ALL the battle). So, we stress again and again to our FGK Members that EVERY advantage is important when it comes to precision kicks.

Remember, comfort and familiarity leads to confidence. Confidence, well, you are going to need it no matter what level you are kicking…especially in front of the coach.

Remember, if you are kicking using the good old “trial and error method”, consider joining this website today…become an FGK Kicker Member and have access to ALL the videos and content created by our team to not only teach you to kick soccer style, but to help you kick even better than you do today!

Once you are kicking in high school (age 14+ in most cases), you should be able to relax, the size increases stop.

However, if you are currently in the 8th grade but headed INTO the 9th grade next season, check the size of your ball!

The reality is, that high school is the next step up so age is not particularly as important as what grade you are headed into next year.

I was 12 in the 7th grade and 13 in the 8th grade.  I used ‘Youth’ footballs until I went to high school at age 14….then the ball size moved from Youth to ‘Official’ size where it has been ever since.

You may be using Youth when you need the next size up. Just a helpful tip!

Here are some quick guidelines that should help out:

Before 6th grade – Pee-Wee Size Football

6th Grade Middle School – Junior Size Football

7th & 8th Grade Middle School – Youth/Intermediate Size Football

High School and Beyond – Official Size Football

We also created an easy to read chart here.