My son is 13 and in the 8th grade. His birthday is July 28. This makes him the youngest kid in his class at a 4A school. I have always told him, age is just a number. He has to compete against 14 (and even a few 15) year olds all the time in sports and school. He holds his own. Again, it is just a number. The reason that most freshman will beat an 8th grader has to do with them coming straight out of the high school wrestling program where they are practicing 5 days a week for 2 hours or more. In kids, you don't have the same intensity or time. One year age difference will not matter that much.