<p>Here is a big reason to take high school physics: You want to know if physics is something you find interesting before you decide you want to do engineering (and select a college based on it having engineering degree programs). Engineering involves designing things using math and science, and the science most commonly used is physics.</p>
<p>If you wait until freshman year in college before seeing physics, your options may be more limited if you find that you do not like physics enough to want to continue in engineering (e.g. you cannot rewind the clock and apply as a freshman to different schools based on other possible majors, and may have to transfer to a different school).</p>