: : football

Get Into the Game!

 

South Orange County Patriots provides football teams at different divisions based on the players age and weight from the following areas - Laguna Niguel, Dana Point, San Clemente, Laguna Beach, Aliso Viejo, San Juan Capistrano, Ladera Ranch, Mission Viejo & Rancho Santa Margarita. We plan on fielding teams from Future League (Jr. Flag) to Jr. Midget this year.

OCJAAF Age & Weight Requirements for 2013
Weights as of Team Certification Day in August
Tackle Football Age Weights
Age Birth Date Range Jr. Clinic Clinic Jr. Pee Wee Pee Wee Jr. Midget Midget
7 8/1/05-7/31/06 50-100          
8 8/1/04-7/31/05 50-100 55-120        
9 8/1/03-7/31/04   55-115 115-130      
10 8/1/02-7/31/03   55-100 100-125 125-145    
11 8/1/01-7/31/02     60-110 110-140 140-165  
12 8/1/00-7/31/01       70-130 130-160 160-unlimited
13 8/1/99-7/31/00         80-160 160-unlimited
14 9/1/98-7/31/99         80-140* 105-unlimited

* Jr. Midget 14 year olds must be in 8th grade.

** NOTE: One pound per week weight allowance will be added at weigh in before each game.

The initial weights are confirmed in a “certification” process when prospective players are weighed without equipment. The upper weight limits increase each week during the season to accommodate the fact that all of these players are growing.

Players are weighed before each game to ensure that they satisfy the applicable weight requirements. A player who does not satisfy the weight requirement will not be permitted to play in the game.

OCJAAF Rule Book: Click on the following for current rules and regulations - 2012 OCJAAF Rule Book

Registration Fees: Registration fee is $325.00 for tackle football until April 1st, and $125.00 for flag (or future league) football. April 1st tackle fees will increase to $425.

Refund Policy: Please click on the following link for our refund policy: Patriot Refund Policy 2012

Football Equipment:

Every tackle football player must wear equipment, including: helmet & face guard, mouth guard, shoulder pads, and knee, thigh, hip and tail bone pads. Game jerseys, game pants, practice jerseys and shoulder pads and helmets are provided by us. Players are responsible for providing their own practice pants, girdle (or compression shorts), mouthpiece and pads (knee, thigh, hip & tail bone). Equipment is checked fro safety before each game by league officials.

Equipment Day - each player will receive their equipment at Equipment Day. Players must bring a signed Equipment Distribution Form. Just click on the following link to view the form and print out - Equipment Issue Form. This form must be signed by the parent and turned in on Equipment Day in order for the player to receive their gear. For more information on equipment, please click on the following: Equipment Information

We depend on the return of football equipment to support other youth who participate and to minimize the cost of participation. Please do not tear, cut, remove or alter the gear in any way or you will be charged the full cost of the gear.  Please do NOT remove the certification sticker from the helmet or you will be charged $25.00 to get the helmet recertified. You will be financially responsible for the replacement cost of any equipment and uniforms that are lost or not returned as follows:

Complete equipment & uniform $300

  • Football helmet $125
  • Shoulder pads $55
  • Game jersey $75
  • Game pants $40
  • Belt $5

Cleats, practice pants, girdles (or compression shorts), mouthpiece and pads (hip, thigh, knee & tailbone) are not provided by the league. These items are the sole responsibility of the player. NO SCREW IN CLEATS OR ANY FORM OF METAL CLEATS ALLOWED.
Practice:
Pre-season: Practice will begin Monday, July 22rd 2013. Practices will be held five days each week for two hours per day, for a maximum of 10 hours per week. Practices are typically in the evening and times are decided upon by the Head Coach.

Week 1: Players will wear their spirit pack shorts & T-shirt (these will be provided by the Team Managers before the start of practice) and helmets. Practice will consist of non-contact conditioning drills and skill evaluations. Cleats must be provided by the player. Players cannot wear football gear or engage in contact drills until they have completed at least 10 hours of supervised conditioning.

Week 2: Qualifying players will wear full football gear and have limited contact with tackling dummies and shields. We will provide all football gear at Equipment Day preceding the second week of practice.

Week 3: Players will wear football gear and engage in full contact drills. The first scrimmage is usually scheduled at the end of the third week.

During season: once the season starts, practices will be limited to three nights per week for two hours each night. Unless otherwise advised by the Head Coach, players wear football gear to practice.

Practice locations include: Dana Hills Sports Park, Marco Forster Middle School, Bear Brand Park and other locations to be determined.

We cannot overemphasize the importance of participating in practices. We stress individual player development and commitment to the team. Precious practice time is spent conditioning, learning and implementing individual skills as well as team plays. All of these activities are critical to a player’s individual growth and the team as a whole.

Head Coaches may establish policies regarding participation in practice. These policies will be announced by each Head Coach but unexcused absences will have consequences, including becoming ineligible to play in football games and dismissal from the program. It is highly recommended to schedule vacations before or after the season (the season starts on July 22rd, 2012 and can run until early December).

Late Pick-up Consequences:

There should be no late pickups as a responsible adult is required to be at the field with the participant at all times. SOC Patriots is not a baby-sitting service. It is important that parents or guardians attend practices.

If for some reason, you cannot attend practice, please promptly pick up your child at the conclusion of practice. Our coaches and team managers volunteer an enormous amount of their time to teaching and training our football players. None of them are compensated for the contributions they make to the program. Please respect their personal time by picking up your player promptly at the end of practice. Unfortunately, some parents have not always done so. Accordingly, we have established the following policy to encourage parents to pick up their players on time:

  • If pick up is more than 10 minutes late, we will attempt to reach the person listed as the emergency contact on your application to pick up the child.
  • If pick up is more than 15 minutes late and we have not received a phone call from you or reached your emergency contact, we will assume that something has happened and you are not able to pick up your player. At this time the Athletic Director and the President will be called and they will contact the local police department to assist in locating you.
  • If SOC Patriots has found it necessary or appropriate to contact the Police Department to assist in locating a responsible adult, a $25 fine will be imposed. The fine must be paid before the child will be allowed to participate in any SOC Patriots activity.
  • Three instances of picking up your player late will be grounds to drop your player from the program without any refund.
Opponents and Game Locations:

The South Orange County Patriots play football against teams sponsored by our sister organizations. They are: Baldwin Hills, Bellflower, Beverly Hills, Carson, Cerritos, Compton, Corona, Fountain Valley, Huntington Beach, Inglewood, Irvine, Long Beach, Newport-Mesa, Placentia, Riverside, Rowland Heights, Santa Fe Springs-Norwalk, South Bay, South Gate, and Westminster. The various teams are organized into leagues based on a lottery.

Teams generally play an eight game schedule followed by single elimination playoffs leading to the OCJAAF “Super Bowl.”

All regular games will be played on Saturdays, commencing early September. The official game schedule is provided by OCJAAF and done by a computerized system. Just click on the following link to view the 2012 OCJAAF Game Schedule. Be sure to check the OCJAAF website for maps to other teams' fields or click on the following link for a list of maps - OCJAAF field maps 2012

Even though teams are organized into leagues based on geographic considerations, it is important to know that travel is involved and distances can be as much as 120 miles round trip. Our games may be played in Orange County, Los Angeles County or Riverside County.

Before you register your child, make sure that you completely understand the travel requirements and the importance of your child's total participation in every event, home and away. The dates, times and locations of games is determined by OCJAAF via a random draw. Final game schedules will be available before the first game in September
Physical Examinations:

Physicals are required for both football players and cheerleaders. SOC Patriots will arrange for the physicals to be performed at Dana Hills High School on a date to be announced. Keep checking the home page of our website for more information about Physical Day. The cost of this physical exam is included in the registration fee. If you cannot attend this event, or if you wish to have the physical conducted by a personal physician, the physical will be done at your expense. If a private physical is performed, the physician must complete and sign the original player contract before the start of practice. Please contact your Head Coach or Team Manager for additional information.

A player contract will be typed by a chapter official using information derived from applications. The information must be correct and may not be altered by the player or you. The entire contract must be retyped if any changes are required.
Certification:
Certification is the process by which prospective player’s qualifications to participate are verified. Certification takes place on Certification Day in August (location and times TBA). See the calendar page for details. Every chapter involved in OCJAAF participates in Certification Day so literally hundreds of players will go through the certification process.

Any player who does not certify on Certification Day may not participate in practices, scrimmages or games until a make-up certification has occurred. Make-up certifications are offered weekly after Certification Day. Please refer to the calendar on the SOC Patriots website for dates, times and locations.
Volunteers:

Our program depends on the commitment and sacrifice of many volunteers. They devote a substantial amount of their time and energy to support our youth sports program.

For example, consider the time our coaches devote. They attend 10 hours of practice per week during pre-season and attend OCJAAF and SOC Patriots meetings and training sessions. During the season, they participate in six hours of practice per week and attend games every Saturday. On top of this, most coaches spend additional time each week preparing for games by participating in coaches’ meetings, reviewing game films and scouting upcoming opponents. They also spend time talking with parents and their players outside of practice and helping SOC Patriots with activities such as Patriot Football Camp, Physicals, Equipment Day, etc.

We ask our parents to volunteer in support of the program as well. Here are some examples of jobs for which we need volunteers:

Team Manager: This is a critical position on each team. Among other things, they keep the team roster, organize team volunteers, get the answer to every question, make sure parents are informed and arrange team activities. The Team Manager acts as the link between parents and the team’s coach.

Athletic Director: The Athletic Director is responsible for keeping records of participation in practice and attendance. Each team is assigned a team book that includes vital information and OCJAAF required documents. This book must be kept with the team at all times, including practices and games. The athletic director is responsible for this book.

Equipment Manager: The Team Equipment Manager helps with the issuance and collection of football equipment (i.e., helmet, shoulder pads, jersey, pants, etc.). He also is the custodian of the team box that has tools, spare parts and first aid supplies. Among other things, he may replace a broken chin strap or repair a broken helmet snap. The Team Equipment Manager must attend every game.

Game Day Compliance: The Game Day Compliance Volunteer for each team conducts the official weigh-in and equipment inspection before each home game and monitors the "must plays" for all games. Two Game Day Compliance volunteers are needed on the field for all home and away games.

Chain Gang: The Chain Gang works the chains during the game, which provides the best view in the house. Two Chain Gang volunteers are needed on the field for home games and one for away games.

Time Clock: Volunteers operate the scoreboard at each game. This involves starting and stopping the game clock and recording the score. At least one person is required for all home games to operate the time clock.

Team Photographer: The team photographer takes pictures at games and events for players and their families. They can also post their pictures on the Team Page and Picture Page of our website.

Banquet Organizer: The Banquet Organizer is in charge of the end of season celebration for their team. Each player is given a trophy and individual recognition is made of each participant.

Volunteering is a lot of fun. You get the chance to interact with other SOC Patriot family members and to contribute to the program. Without volunteers, we do not have a program and no football players or cheerleaders. Please do your part!