Football Games for PE: 6 Fun Stations for Throwing, Catching, and Punting
Updated: 3 hours ago
Football season is a perfect time to bring some football fun into your physical education classes! Football activities get students active, keep them engaged, and are easy to adjust for any skill level. Many students already love football, which makes them eager to learn and practice the skills in PE.
Pics by Tracy Angel @Mrs_Coach_Angel
Quick Answer: Fun football activities for PE include a Football Obstacle Course, Through the Hoop, Punt for Distance, Partner Throw and Catch, Four Corner Ball Carry, and Two vs. One Passing Mini Games. Run them as stations with groups of 2 to 4 so every student gets lots of turns throwing, catching, punting, and carrying the ball.
If you're looking for new football stations and small group activities to add variety to your classes, you've come to the right place. In this post, I'll cover the football skills you can teach in PE, share tips for running football stations, and walk you through 6 stations that keep students active. Each one includes the equipment, setup, and step-by-step instructions. So grab a football (or a few) and let's get started!
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Football Skills for PE
Football has lots of skills that are easy to teach in a PE unit. Throwing, catching, carrying the ball, kicking, punting, and defending are all key parts of the game. Stations and small group activities are a great way to keep students moving while they learn and practice these skills. They also help students of every skill level succeed, which matters because every student comes to class with a different amount of football experience. My Football Skills poster and Top 10 Football Skills signs are great visuals for this.
Using Stations to Teach Football in PE
Most PE classes are big, and with that many students at different skill levels, it's hard to give everyone the attention they need. Football stations and small group activities let you split the class into smaller groups spread out around your space.
Stations let you teach several skills at the same time and group students by ability. They also need less equipment, and every student gets more turns. For example, one station can work on passing and catching while another works on defense, like pulling flags and covering receivers.
Video by Coach Capps @WCE_PhysEd
Do Football Stations Help Students Meet PE Standards?
Yes! The football PE activities in this post can easily meet district, state, and national standards. They line up with SHAPE America's Standard 1: Develops a variety of motor skills.* When students play in small groups and partner activities, they also work on Standard 3: Develops social skills through movement.*
*National Physical Education Standards are used under license from SHAPE America. © 2024, SHAPE America, https://www.shapeamerica.org/. All rights reserved.
Tips for Setting Up Football Stations
Copy and Laminate Station Signs: Durable visuals help students understand and follow the instructions.
Space Out the Stations: Put station cards around your space with plenty of room between them for safety.
Pics by Tracy Angel @Mrs_Coach_Angel
Number and Rotate: Number the stations and rotate students every 2 to 6 minutes, depending on your time and the number of stations.
Give Clear Instructions: Keep instructions and demonstrations short before students start.
Keep Groups Small: Groups of 2 to 4 at each station mean more turns and more practice for everyone.
Use Music for Transitions: Play music during the activity and stop it when it's time to rotate.
Give Feedback: Walk around during the activities and give skill and behavior feedback as needed.
Adapt as Needed: Adjust activities to fit your students' abilities, equipment, and space.
Use Football Terms: Use football words while you teach the skills to build understanding.
Need more football stations for your PE classes? My PE Football Stations: 20 Fun Football Activities are a great way to take your football unit to the next level!
6 Fun PE Football Activities
1. Football Obstacle Course
Overview: Students take turns running through an obstacle course while carrying a football. They run around a hula hoop, leap over a pool noodle, jump rope, and run back to the start.
Equipment:
1 football for each obstacle course
1 starting poly spot, 1 hula hoop, 1 pool noodle or line, 1 jump rope, and 1 end cone for each obstacle course
Set-Up:
Place a football at the start of each obstacle course.
Students line up at the start, keeping lines short (2 to 4 per line).
Station Instructions:
Start at the start line and run in a circle around the outside of the hula hoop.
Leap over the gym line or pool noodle.
Set the football down and jump rope 3 times.
Pick the ball back up, run around the end cone, and sprint to the finish.
Carry the ball high and tight against your body the whole way.
The next person in line goes. Time your group for extra fun and race other teams.
2. Through the Hoop
Overview: Students take turns throwing a football through a hula hoop from different distances.
Equipment:
Enough footballs for each small group of 2 to 4 students
A hula hoop in a holder, hanging from a basketball hoop, or held up by another student
A few poly spots to throw from
Set-Up:
Place a football at one of the poly spots or throw lines for each group.
Students take turns throwing the football through the hula hoop from different distances.
Station Instructions:
Throw the football from a poly spot or cone.
Aim to send the ball through the hula hoop.
Get the ball between throws and try different distances.
Trade roles with your partner.
Set a throwing order if there are more than 3 in your group.
From My PE Classes
I remember teaching one of my students to throw a football at a target: a ball sitting on top of a cone. I walked him through the cues for a good throw, and it clicked. He threw several perfect spirals and knocked the ball off the cone every time. He was so excited.
3. Punt for Distance
Overview: Students take turns punting a football from a line for distance while partners mark each punt with a cone or poly spot. My Punting Cues poster is a great visual for this station.
Equipment:
Enough footballs for each small group of 2 to 4 students
A line or poly spot to punt from
A cone or poly spot to mark each punt
Set-Up:
Place a football at one of the poly spots or punt lines for each group.
Students take turns punting the football from the line or spot.
Another student marks where the ball lands or stops rolling.
Station Instructions:
Stand behind the punting line.
Punt the ball as far as you can.
Mark the distance with a poly spot or cone.
Bring the ball back to the punting line.
Trade roles with your partner, and set a punting order if needed.
Video by Tracy Angel @Mrs_Coach_Angel
4. Partner Throw and Catch
Overview: Students throw and catch a football with a partner or a small group inside a station area.
Equipment:
Enough footballs for each small group of 2 to 4 students
Set-Up:
Place a football in each station area and set boundaries for students to stay inside.
Station Instructions:
Spread out inside the station area with a partner or a couple of group members.
Throw and catch inside the area, using good throwing and catching cues.
Start with catches standing still, then try catches on the move.
Plan a few pass patterns before you throw.
Try short and long passes.
Work together to complete as many passes in a row as you can without a drop.
5. Four Corner Ball Carry
Overview: Students carry a football around 4 cones, using a different locomotor movement between each cone: running, slide stepping, backpedaling, and crossing over.
Equipment:
1 football for each four corner course
4 cones for each four corner course
Set-Up:
Place a football at the start of each four corner course.
Students line up at cone 1, keeping lines short (2 to 4 per line).
Station Instructions:
The first player starts at cone 1 and runs forward to cone 2.
Slide step, facing out, to cone 3.
Backpedal to cone 4.
Crossover step (grapevine) back to cone 1.
The next person in line goes. Time your group for extra fun.
For a challenge, have another team run the same course at the same time and compare times.
6. Two vs. One Passing Mini Games
Overview: Students take turns playing quarterback, receiver, and defensive back in a small grid.
Equipment:
Enough footballs for each small group of 3 to 4 students
1 or 2 flags per offensive player (optional)
4 cones to make a playing grid
Set-Up:
Place a football in each station area and set up a grid with cones and an end zone.
Station Instructions:
Decide who will be the quarterback, receiver, and defender.
The quarterback and receiver pick a pass play and passing pattern.
The 2 offensive players try to complete a pass.
Rotate positions every 2 or 3 tries.
Play it as flag football if you like: the receiver must stop when their flag is pulled.
If you have a fourth player, they can be the referee and then rotate into the game.
Pics by Stephanie Weber @MrsWeber_PE
Looking for more football ideas? My Football Task Cards have 24 football tasks to help you teach manipulative and movement skills using footballs.
Final Thoughts
Football stations and small group activities are a great way to keep students active and engaged in PE. They're fun, and they help students learn skills and meet the PE standards that matter. You can easily adjust these activities to fit your students' skill levels and ages.
In this post, I've shared 6 fun football stations and activities to help students improve their throwing, catching, punting, footwork, and teamwork. If you'd like a ready-to-go plan, my Flag Football Skills and Games Unit and Throwing a Football Unit each include K-5 lesson plans, and my Football PE Bundle puts the lessons, stations, and task cards together. My Throwing a Football Rubrics, Catching a Football Rubrics, and Punting Rubrics make assessment simple. For more ideas, check out my posts on throwing stations, tag games, soccer lead-up games, and basketball lead-up games. I hope your students have a blast!
Need Resources?
Do you need sport skill stations for your PE program with clear instructions and great visuals? Here's a free set to help!
Fill in the form below to download 20 FREE Sport-Specific PE Station Signs. This PDF digital download includes 2 signs from each of these sport station sets: 1. Base Games, 2. Basketball, 3. Floor Hockey, 4. Football, 5. Lacrosse, 6. Paddle and Racket Sports, 7. Soccer, 8. Team Handball, 9. Track and Field, and 10. Volleyball.
This freebie set will help your PE program for years!
If you're looking for a way to really spice up your PE program, my PE Sports Stations: 10 Product Mega Bundle is the perfect fit. It has over 200 fun, sports-themed station signs and cards (20 stations per sport) to use in your gym or learning space.
You can find this bundle in my TPT store: PE Stations: 10 Resource Bundle of Sports Activities and Games for Skill Development
This collection helps you teach important PE concepts and skills from 10 traditional sports: basketball, base games, football, floor hockey, lacrosse, paddle and racket sports, soccer, track and field, team handball, and volleyball.
About Pete Charrette
Pete Charrette is a National Board Certified physical education teacher and former Georgia PE Teacher of the Year with more than 30 years of experience teaching elementary PE. He is the creator of Cap'n Pete's Power PE and has developed more than 1,000 PE and health resources used by teachers around the world. Pete loves helping PE teachers build programs their students enjoy.
