At least four Massachusetts high school football programs have forfeited games this season because they don't have enough players to safely take the field — a collapse in participation that stands in stark contrast to states where the sport still means something.
The Boston Herald reports that Lexington High, Saugus High, Quabbin Regional, and Millis High have all scrapped upcoming contests due to roster shortages and injury concerns. Lexington is 0-6 and has been outscored 284-14 this season, including a 62-0 shellacking by Reading last Thursday. The Minutemen forfeited their next two Middlesex League games, and their Thanksgiving morning rivalry with Concord-Carlisle — dating back 103 meetings — is now in doubt. Saugus, also 0-6 and outscored 213-26, told Gloucester it couldn't suit up this Friday. Quabbin Regional, 1-5, wiped out two games after mounting injuries. Millis forfeited its Oct. 6 contest against Bellingham before returning to lose 30-6.
This isn't a bad season. It's a trend. According to National Federation of State High School Associations data cited by the Herald, Massachusetts football participation plummeted 17.2 percent between 2008 and 2024 — from 20,789 players down to 17,220. That's more than double the nationwide decline of 7.4 percent across 37 states. The Herald attributes the drop to COVID, increased concussion awareness, the rise of flag football, and year-round club sports siphoning athletes away.
Now look at the states where football isn't retreating. AL.com is busy spotlighting Alabama 4A running backs like Isaiah Bennett of Sipsey Valley, who rushed for 2,030 yards and 20 touchdowns last season and has already piled up 1,342 yards and 19 scores through seven games in 2026. His coach Joey Milligan called him "a leader on the field, in the weight room and in the classroom." Zakorien Chambliss of Sylacauga posts a 325-pound bench and 500-pound squat to go with his 4.4-second 40-yard dash. In central Pennsylvania, the York Daily Record reports three undefeated teams — Hanover, Big Spring, and West York — heading into Week 9, with competitive playoff races across the region. Gettysburg's Grant Johnson has 2,233 total yards and 26 touchdowns through eight games.
The Herald framed the Massachusetts forfeits as "disappointing and unfortunate" and buried the participation data deep in the story. What neither the Herald nor any outlet in the stack will say outright: Massachusetts has spent years prioritizing everything except the kind of rugged, competitive contact sport that builds discipline and toughness in young men. Flag football is growing. Tackle football is shrinking. The state with the steepest participation decline in the country is the same state that leads on progressive social policy. Maybe that's coincidence. Maybe it isn't.
The question nobody in Massachusetts education leadership wants to answer: what exactly are they replacing it with?
