In just three short years, high-school football participation has decreased by 10 percent, according to statistics from the National Federation of State High School Associations, and many states are beginning to take notice.The Georgia High School Association is the newest state athletic association to adopt policies regarding the amount of contact coaches can allow during football practices. The new rules were set to follow safety guidelines recommended last summer by the national federation.Some coaches have adjusted to the impending rule changes, while others feel the GHSA has gone too far.The new rules, which will take effect Aug. 1, will limit full contact to 45 minutes per day and 135 minutes per week in preseason and then only 30 minutes per day and 90 per week in the regular season. Coaches will not be permitted to schedule practices involving full-contact drills over three consecutive days.“What’s alarming is almost a half million less (athletes participating) than we had three years ago,” said GHSA assistant football director Tommy Whittle in a phone interview Thursday afternoon.