Northern MN football season canceled due to increased player injuries

WADENA, Minn. (FOX 9) - School district officials with the Wadena-Deer Creek football program have decided to forego the remainder of its high school football season, citing the safety of its student-athletes.

What we know

Calling it a "tough, but necessary decision," district officials released a statement commending the hard work of its players, while saying that as injuries began to mount throughout the 2024 football season, their available student-athletes dwindled to "very, very low numbers."

The release went on to say that while coaches felt confident in the team when healthy, coming into their seventh game they would have been forced to play a majority of 14- and 15-year-old students – something they said was "not in the best interest of our kids." 

The team currently only has eight players available in grades 10-12 to play, and would likely go up against teams with players 17–18 years old.

The result, according to head coach Kyle Petermeier, was a situation that they were "no longer comfortable with."

What’s next?

The district release says next season will begin as planned, saying its "younger grade numbers are the best they have been in a long time."

According to the district, it currently has 96 student-athletes participating in its football program, between grades 5-9.

"Football is a game that requires strength in numbers, and we will do anything we can to keep these numbers high," the statement said.