Drive by any Hawai'i high school football field these days, and you might see dozens of kids running organized sets of sprints, going through agility drills or practicing their techniques in preparation for the upcoming season.

But all that will come to a screeching halt Monday, when a newly created "dead period" goes into effect statewide that prohibits football coaches from having any contact with their players for one week.

The rule was approved last month by the Hawai'i High School Athletic Association's executive board, as part of a broader plan to prevent coaches in all team sports from "monopolizing" athletes and to allow kids some time alone to take care of personal business or perhaps play other sports.

But it was met with some objection by O'ahu Interscholastic Association football coaches Monday night at their annual preseason meeting at 'Aiea High School. Kapolei coach Darren Hernandez said he was speaking for other coaches when he expressed concerns about safety and not having input into the decision.

"I think some of the coaches knew a little about it, but I think many of us didn't realize what 'no contact' means," Hernandez said after the meeting. "To me, it's a safety issue because the week before practice starts (on July 31) is when conditioning is paramount, and now we're going to have kids doing absolutely nothing. Some kids might work out on their own just for the love of it, but others will just sit around and do nothing, and it's going to affect their conditioning."

Some football teams begin their weight training and conditioning programs in January, building up to climax when practice starts in late July or August. Hernandez said the week before the official start of practice usually is spent "fine-tuning" the work they have done all offseason and for testing the players' progress in speed, conditioning and weight training.

At the HHSAA meeting in June, board members said the "dead" week will give the players a chance to take their physicals and prepare for the start of school without worrying about reporting for scheduled workouts.

"Part of it is to give the kids a short 'vacation' before the season begins," said OIA football coordinator Harold Tanaka, in response to a coach's question about the rule's purpose. "They don't want coaches to monopolize the athletes."

The new statewide athletic calendar actually includes "dead periods" for all team sports, so volleyball coaches also will be restricted from being with their players next week.

'Aiea girls coach Blythe Yamamoto, whose team has qualified for the past two state tournaments, said she normally gives her players that week off anyway.

"They will be mine for the next three or four months, so this is like their 'last hurrah' for the summer," Yamamoto said. "Our goal is always to play into November, and that's a long season. It's a lot of wear and tear on their bodies, and it can be hard to keep them focused the whole time. We want to make sure our players don't get burned out, and we have to remember that they're still kids."

As for coaches' input, OIA executive secretary Dwight Toyama said an HHSAA sub-committee worked on the calendar for more than a year and the subject was brought up at several league athletic directors meetings, where feedback was encouraged.

Reach Wes Nakama at wnakama@honoluluadvertiser.com.