Planning on a driving holiday across the US and want to do stuff from the movies so obviously a high school football game is essential but have no idea how you go about seeing one,is it possible in September?do I need tickets?where and when are they played?what questions should I be asking that I don’t even know to ask?any help would be appreciated,thanks
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They’re played on Friday nights. You buy tickets at the gate. You can Google high schools in the town or city you’ll be in and look at their schedule.
Find out which city/town you’ll be in on a Friday night. Look up local high schools. Find their football schedules. Find one that is playing in the city/town you will be in. Find their football stadium. Walk up. Pay ~$10 for a ticket.
I’m gonna do you one better.
Depending on where you are in September, go to a college football game on a Saturday. That’s probably the best football experience in the US if you’re in an area with prominent college football.
You can witness our sacred tradition of tailgating.
Varsity games are played on Fridays, games are played during the Fall, you have to purchase a ticket, it will be just a few bucks. I can’t tell you where the tickets are sold as every school is different and our country is massive.
Just FYI, high school football is only a big deal in the South and Texas usually. So if you’re looking for something like Friday Night Lights, then plan your trip accordingly. You’ll probably be disappointed if you go looking for a high school football game in, say, Wyoming.
It will be on Friday night or Saturday afternoon depending on the area. September is the right time of year.
Fridays night football and, yes, in September. You can just get a ticket
It’s recommended to go down to the South in September if you want an authentic high school football experience. My personal opinion is that you check out a college game instead as those have a pretty big following across the South mostly.
I have a little more time now to respond to your question. What are you trying to get out of the experience? What is your impression of what it’s like? At my high school in Virginia, it was a fun thing to do, but it wasn’t this huge event like a major college football game or like it apparently is in Texas. If you’re looking for a slice of life kinda thing, that could be different than if you’re looking for a big spectacle. Going to a game at the University of Florida would be a spectacle type event, but it would be more expensive and is pretty far away. Florida Atlantic University is nearby, but they’re not a particularly big time team. The best college football experiences are actually in more out of the way places where there’s not a lot else going on. I don’t know much about South Florida high school football, but I’d think it must be pretty big considering how many good players come from there.
Find a local high school. There is, almost universally and with little vartiation, football game going on in every town, one every Friday night. You will need tickets, but they’re pretty trivial to get. Any idiot could figure that out without much studying.
The important thing to remember is to “read the crowd” and learn who to root for. It’ll be some radom name like the “Whateverville Avengers”, so just play along. For as long as you’ve remembered, you’ve been the biggest fan of the Whateverville Avengers, at least for tonight.
Bonus points if you get your face painted with the team’s colors. Not required, but always a good look.
Oh, you’re in for a treat.
High school football games are fun! The bands, the cheerleaders, the game itself. Make sure when you pull into a town, check out the sports page and see what the big matchup is going to be that Friday night.
And if you’re in the South or the Midwest, go to an SEC or Big 10 college football game and do the tailgate. Walk up to any bunch of tailgaters, tell them you’re visiting the country and want to check out college football atmosphere, and you won’t have to pay a dime for food or brooze.
September is in season for high school football. They generally play most Friday nights from late August/ early September through November. Games usually start around 7:00 PM, and last for 2-2.5 hours. I’d suggest showing up 20 minutes or so before the game is scheduled to begin so you can get settled in. There is often some pre-game entertainment from student performing groups.
How “big” of a thing it is varies from place to place, and more successful teams tend to draw bigger crowds. I’d suggest that you plan out your itinerary, see roughly where you’re going to be on a Friday night during your trip, and then ask a location-specific subreddit for recommendations on what’s likely to be a good game in the region that night.
You should expect to pay somewhere in the range of $10 or less per ticket. You might be able to pay with a credit card, but don’t count on it.
There is often viable dinner food available from stands inside the stadium. Burgers/ hot dogs, fries, that sort of thing. Not fancy or well-balanced, but you can make a passable meal out of it. Again, plan to pay in cash.