CAMP ZAMA, Japan — A deafening silence hung over the athletic office on this United States Army post where roughly 40 teenagers were lying on the floor, nearly on top of one another.
They were members of the Zama Middle High School football team, and they were clearing their thoughts and slowing their breathing in preparation for their homecoming game. Two years after adopting a mindfulness program, the Trojans were 3-0 and on their way to a second consecutive winning season. They ultimately finished 6-0 and won the Far East title in their division.
It is true that high school football is in decline in America, where participation has dropped 10 percent in the past decade, even in football hotbeds like Texas, Florida and Nebraska.