NORTH CAROLINA -- Get ready for Friday night lights at high schools across our state.

  • North Carolina High Schools were allowed to start practicing at midnight.
  • A new program called "Heads Up" has been a huge help with concussion safety.
  • Most high schools in our state will be finalizing their rosters in the next few weeks.

North Carolina High Schools were allowed to start practicing at midnight.

While bad weather put a damper on the first day back for some, many teams, like Millbrook High School in Raleigh, went indoors for drill work and conditioning.

Millbrook Football coaches tell Spectrum News concussion safety is always a main concern and a new program called "Heads Up" has been a huge help with the issue. Now schools statewide are considering it.

"The big thing in sports now, even in the NFL, is concussions," said Assistant Head Coach Josh Bunting. "Since we've started this program and have been teaching the boys the correct way to block and tackle, we've actually seen a decrease in concussions at our school."

Most high schools in our state will be finalizing their rosters in the next few weeks.

The first official game day is Aug. 17.

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