At many high schools, the football team's star players also happen to be standouts on the wrestling squad. This is no coincidence. While the two sports differ greatly in terms of rules and objectives, they do rely on some similar physical and mental attributes. And because football season usually precedes wrestling season, there's no overlap. So if you're a football player with an open winter schedule, give grappling a try -- it might do more for your game than you'd have anticipated.
Stamina
Both wrestling and football require a great deal of physical endurance. Football players regularly sprint dozens of yards at a time with less than one minute between plays, and the games last for hours. Wrestling matches span just six minutes in clock time, but it's extremely tiring because during the course of each two-minute period, you're grappling for position and using all of your strength to out-muscle your opponent. This, along with grueling daily training, is why wrestlers have top-notch endurance, which will help you stay fresh during the course of a football game and season.
Strength
Wrestling and football both require immense physical strength --- football because of all of the non-stop physical contact and tackling and wrestling because it requires power to escape pins and take down or pin your opponent. In fact, in an ESPN.com study of the 60 most difficult sports, football and wrestling came in second and third, respectively, in the strength difficulty category. Competing in wrestling will build your muscle power and stamina for football.
Leverage
While strength and stamina are important in wrestling, they're not everything. Wrestlers rely heavily on their ability to maintain a powerful stance at all times and get lower than their opponent. Becoming better at gaining leverage on an opponent comes in handy for football players -- particuarly linemen, who on every play engage in a wrestling-like grappling match with opposing lineman. This is why a lot of standout wrestlers who play football happen to be linemen.
Mental Aspects
Both football and wrestling require toughness and quick reactions. If you're not mentally tough and alert, you're unlikely to last in sports that require quick-witted reactions as well as ironclad physical and emotional willpower. Because wrestling is a one-on-one sport, participants have no help on the mat and must learn to cope with challenges and react decisively. When, as a wrestler, you learn to respond to an opponent's lightning-quick takedown attempt, it'll help you quickly diagnose the opponent's strategy and react -- without losing confidence after failing on any given play -- on the football field.
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