The Greats Played High School Football

NFHS Hall-of-Famer Joe Carter: Touchdown Passes Before World Series Walkoffs

Joe Carter watched his World Series-winning walkoff homerun float over the Skydome fence in 1993.

But before that, he threw touchdown passes in a Oklahoma state championship game.

“If I had played baseball all year long, I wouldn’t have been a professional baseball player because I would have burned out,” says Carter.

Carter dominated high school football, basketball and track on top of baseball. That’s why he’s a 2026 NFHS Hall-of-Famer—and a true legend of sport.

“I will take an athlete who played two or three sports over an athlete who just played one sport because those guys know how to take advantage of a situation and know how to adjust,” says Carter.

The greats of many sports played high school football, too.

#ThisIsHSFootball

Be sure to use the hashtag #ThisIsHSFootball whenever you share stories and photos about football on social media!

This is what high school football is all about

Smart rules. Real results.

This isn’t your grandfather’s football.

Hustle & Heart: Happening Across America

The second week of September is the peak of the high school football season, with 7,246 games across the country.

Develop character for life

From the very first practice to the last game of the season, high school football prepares players for LIFE.

More positions. More opportunities to play.

Football is different than most high school sports because it offers 88 opportunities to participate in a game!

Thank you for a memorable season

Looking back on this high school football season, what mattered most weren’t the stats, the final scores, or the wins and losses.

High school football changes us

As another high school football season comes to an end, who players were when they stepped onto the field is not who they are when they step off of it.