Pop Warner Players Set to Learn More Than Just Football

The bad news for Westford youths is that summer is winding down and school is just around the corner. But for football players in town, the good news is that Pop Warner season has officially arrived.

Monday marks the first day of sanctioned practices in Westford, with a total of 160 football players and 60 cheerleaders getting to work to form seven teams from five years old through eighth grade.

“Our goal is to teach the kids the right way to play football,” said Westford Pop Warner President Levon Habosian. “We want to teach them the fundamentals, skills and life lessons. We really focus on each piece of the puzzle and what it takes to be a good student-athlete.”

Though numbers are a bit down this year, Habosian said he expects an outstanding season for players, cheerleaders, coaches, and family members.

Habosian has been involved with Pop Warner for 18 years, and remains the head of the league even without any children currently in the program.

The league president said there has been a tremendous amount of behind the scenes work preparing for the season, but it will all be worth it once the players hit the gridiron.

“It’s about giving back to the kids and the town, and I have a blast doing it,” said Habosian. “Watching the kids’ smiles when they walk off the field with a win, it’s just a thrill. When the cheerleaders hit the right jump, you see them running off the to hug their parents. It’s just a great atmosphere.”

Over the years, Habosian said there have been many changes for the better as far as player safety is concerned. Habosian said Westford has “stepped up” to buy a great deal of new equipment aimed at preventing injuries, specifically concussions.

In addition, he said there are less contact drills in practice to spare players from enduring more big hits than necessary.

Though by Pop Warner rules, Westford teams technically could have begun on August 1, though Habosian opted to have his players wait until Monday to start – much to the objection of plenty of residents.

“I got a lot of phone calls with people saying ‘We can start on August 1, why do we have to wait until Monday?’” said Habosian lightheartedly. “You get so into it that you forget it’s Pop Warner. You just become a little family as a part of your team, and it just goes from there. You’d have to be nuts to not love doing this.”