The start of the High School Football season in Illinois will be moving up a few days as the Illinois High School Association announced Feb. 13 that its member schools voted to approve a bylaw that changes the starting date of the 2026 football season, as well as the number of practices required by each player to compete in the first contest.
The first football practice of the 2026 football season can now be held on Wednesday, Aug. 5 (previous start date was Aug. 10).
Each player must complete 12 days of on-field practices before they are eligible to compete in their first game.
