For a reporter who covers high school sports, July represents a brief pause in the action.

But here's the catch: There really isn't much of a break at all.

Why?

In a word, the answer is football.

I covered the Andrean baseball team's Class 3A state championship win on June 20, the last official day of the 2008-09 Indiana high school sports season. During my drive home from Indianapolis that evening, I literally switched to football mode.

And I know I'm not the only one who's been programmed to obsess about the gridiron because our staff is holding a prep football meeting tonight. The first high school games in the Hoosier state aren't scheduled to be held until Aug. 21, but football is akin to the winter holiday season. You can never plan too far ahead of time.

Apparently, the National Federation of State High School Associations also operates with that philosophy in mind.

In the midst of my offseason football trance, I found a press release on the Indiana High School Athletic Association's Web site that describes a significant rule change for the upcoming season.

Following the lead of the NFL and the NCAA, the NFHS added the horse-collar tackle to its list of illegal personal contact fouls. In other words, it will be illegal for players to grab the inside back or side collar of the ball carrier and pull him to the ground. If the rule is violated, a 15-yard penalty will be assessed from the succeeding spot.

Adopting the rule makes perfect sense because horse-collar tackles cause too many injuries.

I realize football is always going to be dangerous, and I'm not advocating a "softer" version of the game. I am, however, in favor of eliminating cheap, fundamentally unsound tackling techniques that lead to torn knee ligaments and broken legs and ankles.

Horse-collar tackles might not occur often, but they're certainly more prevalent at the high school level than in the college or professional ranks simply because prep players usually aren't as proficient when it comes to tackling. They're more likely to cheat solid defensive techniques and resort to yanking someone down by his pads.

Hammond football coach Robert Robinson Jr. said it's a valid point.

"It's pretty dangerous when someone grabs somebody from behind," Robinson said. "I always teach my defensive backs if someone gets by you, you need to jump on their back and ride them down.

"It's a smart rule, and I think it's better for the game. ... Anything that protects the kids from serious injuries is a good thing. If it's good enough for the NFL and colleges, it's good enough for us."

Robinson's only concern about the change is that officials might take a while to adjust to the new rule. But if they're already in football mode like many of us are, there shouldn't be anything to worry about.

This column solely represents the writer's opinion. Reach him at nate.ulrich@nwi.com.