USA Football’s equipment grant program, which is offering $1.5 million in resources to benefit young athletes, is still open until this Wednesday, March 13 at 5 p.m. ET. All youth, middle school and high school football programs that are 501(c)(3) compliant are encouraged to apply online at usafootball.com/grants now through Wednesday’s deadline. Grants awarded are based on need, merit and a program’s commitment to coaching education and implementing best practices.

The grants are valued at up to $1,000 and provide the opportunities for both youth and scholastic teams to upgrade equipment. Here are some testimonials from recipients of grants from Riddell, USA Football’s longest standing grant partner.

Sedrick Poole, Commissioner of the Bill Arp Falcons

The Bill Arp Falcons tackle football program located near Atlanta has received multiple grants through USA Football, allowing them to get new Riddell shoulder pads and helmets along with field equipment like step over and blocking bags.

“Every organization needs a grant, every organization needs equipment,” Poole said. “Our equipment, we give it to our players and it’s a blessing to be able to do that, especially for some parents that can’t afford it.”

Poole makes sure he applies for USA Football equipment grants each year.

“If you don’t apply for the grant, then you’re doing a disservice to your organization,” Poole said. “You don’t know what you’re going to get from it. Even if you don’t get the grant, there’s a lot of things that USA Football can help with.”

Tony Morrow, Waterloo (Ill.) Sports Association

Tony Morrow of the Waterloo Sports Association said his organization has also received multiple grants through USA Football, using them to get helmets, shoulder pads, blocking bags and body shields.

“It’s helped us, obviously. We’re a non-for-profit volunteer program, so we’re on a budget trying to match expenses and revenues,” Morrow said. “Being able to get the grant … it’s drastically helped us.”

Morrow said that promoting Heads Up Football and utilizing the USA Football equipment grant program has been a “win-win.”

“We’ve got the grant a few times and we get a couple dozen helmets out of the deal, so it’s definitely helped us,” Morrow said. “It’s been a win-win for us, we applied and we’re glad for it. We give it nothing but good props when we get a chance to talk about it.”

The following resources are provided by official USA Football partners:

• Tackle football equipment from Riddell
• Flag football equipment from NFL FLAG powered by USA Football
• Uniforms from Badger Sports
• Field and practice equipment from Tackle Tube, Shadowman Sports and Gilman Gear
• Background checks from Peopletrail
• Wearable technology from Catapult

Since 2006, USA Football’s grant program has awarded more than $14 million in grants to both school-based and youth football programs. In that time, the equipment grants, which are made possible through the NFL Foundation, have benefitted more than 500,000 youth and high school football players from more than 9,500 programs across all 50 states.