Find Out Why High School Football Players ROCK at Kids Carnivals!

There are three reasons you'll love to have high school (or middle school) football players at your organization's next carnival, fun fair, or festival. Yes, this may seem like an unusual post and very specific post -- why football players? However, keep reading to see why you'll absolutely love having football players as volunteers at your next big event!

 Put the Football Team in Charge of THIS Game!

Firstly, we acknowledge that it seems obvious to have your football players volunteering at your football-themed carnival game! There are some other awesome reasons why your local teen football team should help out at your carnival football game booth. But let's start with looking at the different football toss games you can have at your carnival or fall festival!

(Post last updated by the Carnival Savers Team on July 26, 2021)

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The image above shows three different variations on the football toss carnival game.

There are a few game variations that we suggest having football players volunteer at: the Football Toss, the Touchdown Toss and our NEW Hail Mary Football Toss. All these carnival games are similar, with winning players successfully making a "touchdown" by throwing a football through a ring, hoop, tire, or hole. 

Click here for the DIY Football Toss Carnival Game setup, play, and prize instructions. This carnival game uses an old tire and a wooden frame to support the tire. We also recommend the Touchdown Toss Fall Festival Game that uses a large plywood board decorated to look like a football field. The Touchdown Toss game page also includes set-up, play, and prize instructions. 

The first two games are homemade. They require volunteers to build a wooden structure that players throw footballs through, but we think they're adorable, fun, and absolutely worth the effort. Plus, they can be stored and saved for years to come!

But... if you are looking for a last-minute football toss game, check out the Hail Mary Football Toss which may be perfect for you too! See the video clip below. :)

We set up this game using a school fence, a sturdy school gutter, a hundred foot long pennant banner, and hula hoops! Notice how the football players toss the balls to prevent a delay in the carnival game while retrieving a ball? They look like they are all having fun too! This high school football team gets 5 stars from us!

(Short Carnival Savers gif above shows kids tossing a ball over a hanging multicolored triangle banner.)

 Spare Your Non-Football Volunteers... 

Now we're going to discuss the many reasons to invite your local highschool football team to volunteer at your carnival! 

First, football players easily catch and toss the footballs - which makes them the perfect fit for volunteering at this game! Because footballs are tossed through hoops or holes, there is nothing to catch them from jumping yards away from your Football or Touchdown Toss games. Non-athletic carnival volunteers may become tired pretty quickly running after unruly, flying footballs! As you know, the irregular shape of footballs causes them to jump around on the ground and can be difficult to catch for your ordinary mom volunteer. Youth football players are skilled at catching the flyaway footballs and gently tossing them back at kids. This makes the football games run more quickly and smoothly, resulting in shorter lines and wait times. It's fun for everyone involved!

As a BONUS -  it's a fantastic way for football players to achieve their required volunteer hours for the year (if their school or clubs require them.) Many schools and/or clubs require middle and high school kids to get a certain number of volunteer hours, so be sure to contact local middle and high schools to let them know that you're in need of football players as volunteers. These students will want to volunteer at your carnival, because it's a fun way for them to reach their volunteer hour goals!

Note: Don't forget to ask the football team volunteers to wear their football jerseys - the kids will love it! 

The above image shows a young happy boy after playing at a Carnival Football Booth! Image courtesy: by Kamal Bilal on Unsplash. Used with permission.

 Kids Look Up To These Local Stars!

The second reason local school football teams rock at your school carnival is that these players are seen as "heroes!"

Kids love having older kids they can look up to as role-models, and cool football players are no exception! Younger kiddos see these big, talented football players and see them as "celebrities," - especially if they have older football-playing siblings or have a dream of becoming a professional athlete. 

In addition, many teens love volunteering to help out and interact with younger children.Everybody benefits from this fun football game interaction!  

 You Can Really USE Those Football Muscles...

Finally, carnivals and festivals can require a lot of lifting and moving for setup and take down! Enlist the help of these bigger, strong teens (who love to share how much they can "bench press") before your carnival for set up and clean up.

This will prevent your parent volunteers (who may not be as buff as they used to be) from trying to lift items that will make them sore the next day or send them to the chiropractor! As a side note - be sure to invite adults who are strong and physically fit (you know - the ones who go to the gym regularly etc.) to join the other young athletes for some of these muscle-using tasks. 

Carnival planners will be happy to have some "heavy lifting folks" to help move tables, heavy ice chests, large, bulky games, set up & take down tents, and more!

The above image shows a young baseball player volunteering at a carnival booth.

 HINT: Can Be Modified For Different Sports Games!

Okay... so it goes without saying that middle- and high- school Baseball Players, Soccer Players and other Sports Stars ROCK too! If you're lucky enough to have many teen sports players volunteering at your carnival, be sure to suggest that they work booths that have flyaway balls!

Talented catchers and throwers are an awesome asset to have at your carnival, because they help toss game balls back at kids quickly, which results in shorter line wait-times. Examples of these other games include the Baseball Throw and Hole-In-One but can also be really handy at rented games like the "Pitch Burst" shown above in the picture!

We hope you will enjoy putting some of these quick tips to use with your next big event!

Thanks for reading the Carnival Savers blog! Check out the rest for more carnival event hints and tips.