Can you keep your high school football jersey?

High school football players tend to play a few years of high school football then graduate from the school. For memory’s sake, are they allowed to keep the jersey?

There are no real set rules when it comes to keeping your high school football jersey, though generally the school and athletic association owns the jersey. This means that outside of cases when the student or their parents purchased a jersey, a school is unlikely to let a student keep their jersey because it will be useful for a student the following year.

We’ll talk more in depth about who owns high school uniforms in addition to when a high school student might be able to keep their uniform after they are done playing.

Can you keep your high school football jersey?

In most cases, no. Most schools buy many of the pieces of equipment that make a complete high school football uniform, ranging from pads to a helmet and jersey. With that said, it is possible for a school or athletic’s office to give players access to buy their own keepsake jersey that they can hold on to.

As a general suggestion: Ask first before keeping a jersey, especially if it’s the only one you have. There is a good chance that the school intends to wash and potentially change the name on the jersey (if there is one) so that they can use it again next year.

Jerseys are not exactly cheap for many schools who have fund raisers for a variety of reasons, and they wil likely ask you to return your jersey to ensure that they don’t have to buy more.

Where are jerseys kept?

Since high school football jerseys often represents an investment for the school, it isn’t uncommon for the jerseys to be kept at the school, in the locket room. This also gives a team assistant ready access to wash and repair jerseys in preparation for game day – and relieves the students of the need to wash their own jerseys and bring them back to school for game day.

How much do football jerseys cost?

Players and football parents might be a little surprised to learn how much football jerseys cost. The starting cost can be $80 to $120 per player, keeping in mind that most teams will need a home and away jersey in a light color and a dark color.

From what we’ve researched, it isn’t uncommon to replace jerseys every few years because they do get worn out – and to replace only one set of jerseys – home or away, depending on which one is darker and got loss stained over the years.

There can be additional costs like embroidered logos or adding names to the back of jerseys. 

Why would a high school football player want to keep their jersey?

The answer is mostly nostalgia. Players and their families tend to love the atmosphere at a friday night football game, and to be real honest, many players won’t go on to play competitively in college, so their jersey is the easiest keepsake to wear from their days of competitive football.

Some schools give players the option to buy a second jersey so that they can have one to keep – and we suggest doing this early on, in part because buying a jersey through the high school in bulk can be cheaper and provide a higher quality jersey than buying one from a store on your own.

What if a player just keeps their jersey?

From what we’ve heard, high school football coaches – and high school football parents – do a good job of communicating that the jersey is not to keep and will be worn by a student next year. With that said, students and parents also tend to sign contracts indicating that the school will pursue the uniform if not left in the locker room after their final game.

It’s also worth noting that, much like previously stated, the jerseys tend to stay at the stadium and locker room anyway to be maintained and laundered.

Talk to your school about options

Playing high school football only lasts so long. Ask your school about options in regards to ordering an additional jersey for home and after school. Some will let player and their parents cover the costs of a third jersey for themselves. Just don’t get in too much trouble trying to keep the jersey otherwise.

Can high school football players give someone their jersey?

It’s not uncommon for NFL players to give their jerseys to one another after a game. This isn’t quite the case in high school, as the players aren’t allowed to give away their jersey. The fundraising efforts, especially at a public school, generally push players away from giving someone else their jersey after a game.

Note that we’ve read about high schools where players temporarily have a favorite teacher wear their jersey for a day in recognition of their educational efforts – but the teachers have to give the jersey back.

Key Takeaways

• High school football players are generally not allowed to keep their game jersey
• Some schools allow players to purchase an additional jersey so they can keep a jersey afterwards.
• Game jerseys would still go back to the school for maintenance – and for a student the following year
• High school football jerseys can cost upwards of $80-$120 per student with multiple sets often needed for home and away games.
• Most high schools encourage students to keep their jerseys in the locker room so that the team staff can clean the jerseys between games.