Hacky sack is making a comeback and taking the east coast by storm, spreading throughout the halls of West Essex. In the courtyard, parking lot or even across social media, this trend is resurfacing as the sack gets kicked around a circle. The sudden popularity of the game is confusing to most, but for teachers born in the ’80s, the game feels both familiar and nostalgic.
“I played hacky sack when I was in high school between 1988-1992,” history teacher John Regan said. “It was a fun activity that we could do in the summer or after school and practices. Many times there would be multiple circles of kids playing, and my fondest memories were playing it with my friends down the shore.”
Although the game is newly popular among high school students, the game originated in 1972 and gained popularity in the 1980s. The objective of the game is to keep the sack, a small, beanbag-like ball in the air without using hands or arms. The game begins with a player serving the sack off another player’s chest, and that’s where the rally begins. Groups of two or more players stand in a circle, collaboratively kicking the sack and using tricks to keep the footbag in the air.
“You’ll see somebody play in the courtyard, and then people come out every five minutes to join in,” senior Eiler Marcher said. “It’s fun to see everybody in the courtyard now just having fun all day, any period.”
The game is gaining so much popularity with the help of social media. On Instagram or TikTok, high school teams in New Jersey will post highlight videos of them playing sack, which helps teams compete against other schools. The official instagram sack page for New Jersey, @njsack, helps post rankings and madness brackets. Schools including West Essex, send in videos of them rallying and doing fun tricks, which are ranked and compared to other high schools.
“There’s Instagram pages that run news for all these schools, and there’s over 100 schools that do tournaments,” senior Teddy Skopak said. “Everyone’s connected through social media, and it makes people want to play, because they see all these schools around them playing, and it’s like, why not?”
Hacky sack has turned into a national phenomenon. The game is bringing people together, allowing anyone to play when and how they want. Due to its fun and competitive nature, groups can easily join together to play hacky sack and have a good time.
“People are off their phones, getting in a circle, talking with the boys and getting nice conversations in while rallying and getting better,” senior player Colagio Fiore said.
With practice, balance and coordination, anyone can kick a hacky sack and engage in this social activity. Although there’s no telling where this game resurfaced from or how long it’s going to last, it seems like it’s here to stay.
