HELP ME LEARN?

amen...you cant have it BOTH ways....i played C.Y.O. ...thats for 6th, 7th, and 8th graders all together...and i played all 3 years....but, the coach was able to choose at the beginning of the season which weight class he wanted his team to play in lightweight, or heavyweight, depending on the size of his team....we played heavyweight all 3 yrs.....thats fine...but, dont just put kids where you THINK they should play based on size...that wont work...
we have 5th graders on our team, along with 6th and 7th....i dont ever put a 5th grader, no matter how tough, against a 7th grader, no matter how weak in a one-on-one tackling or blocking drill....its a missmatch every time...we use them in scrimmages all against each other, but try to mix it up so both sides have equal amount of both...
yes, there are always exceptions to the rules of anything...but we use the 2nd qtr for JUST 5th and 6th graders in our league, NOONE wants to put ANY boy at more risk than is normal in football...and putting 5th graders against 7th is nuts....the smallest 7th grader will usually bury the biggest 5th grader...ive seen it....been coaching in this league for 7yrs now...they are two different animals, im telling you....