In his eight years of playing youth football, my son Bradley has had just three head coaches. He had the same coach for both years of “peanut” instructional football and then had a new coach for his first year of pee-wee football. For his second year of pee-wee, there were two teams in the program, so there was a draft to determine the teams. As it turned out, another coach drafted him and he played for that same coach for five seasons.  

The first pee-wee coach had Bradley on the field for just a handful of plays each game, but the second pee-wee coach gave Bradley the chance to compete for the starting center job and the rest is history. Bradley and Coach Chris enjoyed a great relationship for five seasons that included a Super Bowl win and two other postseason bowl game victories.   

RELATED CONTENT: 4 ways to make sure your child’s youth sports coach is really listening to you

Are you the parent of a youth, middle school or high school football player who’s looking for more tips or resources? Check out our Parent Guide, Parents 101 course, nutritious recipes and more.

This fall, Bradley transitions to middle school football and that means a new head coach for the first time in six years. My wife Sheryl and I have talked with him about that and he seems to be in a good frame of mind about it. He’s excited to play for his school and a new coach, but it’s fair to say there will be some nervous moments along the way.

Bradley should be ready to play for a new head coach because he has already experienced change and different voices over the years. In addition to having different coaches at the youth level, Bradley has been able to learn from other coaches and it’s something you might want to think about to help your child transition to a new coach.

RELATED CONTENT: 5 helpful hints for parents coaching youth football for the first time

Summer Football Camps: Bradley has been going to a summer football camp for the last five years and my younger son Jared, who plays flag football, has participated in the same camp for the last three years. It’s a great way for a child to not only learn the fundamentals of the game, but also experience instruction from different coaches.

It’s always good to have different perspectives and learn techniques from other coaches and apply them when your youth football team’s training camp opens up. It’s a good idea for children to share things they may have learned at a camp with the coach as it might be something the coach would want to implement. 

RELATED CONTENT: If you're a middle school football player, should you play for your school team, or a youth team?

Youth Football Showcase Games: Bradley played in one of these games last summer, and to be fair we still have mixed emotions about the overall experience. Even though he was invited by his coach to play, he wound up playing for a different coach and that was a good experience to hear a different voice for an “all-star” type game.

Do your homework on these kinds of pay-to-play games. Some of them are money grabs, but don’t decline an invitation until you’ve done some research. There are situations that are good, especially to get your child experience with a different coach.  

USA Football Events: Always keep an eye out for USA Football events coming to your area. Whether it’s the Protection Tour, Middle School Showcase, or a U.S. National Team Regional, it’s a great way for your child to gain experience learning from some of the best coaches in the country. While the coaches will have their eyes out for players who earn invites for National Team rosters, these events are also great for players as simply one- or two-day clinics.  

There’s always something new with each youth football season.  No team is ever the same from year to year, but one of the biggest transitions for your child is to adapt to a new head coach.  Gaining some experience with different voices at events along the way will certainly help with that transition. 

Peter Schwartz is a sports anchor for the CBS Sports Radio Network, FOX News Headlines 24/7 and WCBS 880 Radio in New York. His older son Bradley will be playing middle school football on Long Island this fall, while his younger son Jared plays flag football. Peter, his wife Sheryl and the boys are busy cheering on the New York Jets when they’re not at a youth football field.