Is there something WE should do?

Just read a disturbing article in Time about the high human cost of brain and vertebra injuries--including concussions--in football, at all levels. From pee wees to the pros, too many players are receiving life changing/threatening injuries, because of faulty and over aggressive blocking/tackling, inadequate equipment, and a sport-wide attitude that minimizes injury response.



You owe it to yourself and your favorite football players to read the article and consider what role we as fans might play in improving this situation. The article mentions some first steps--rule and equipment changes, stronger medical/training protocols around concussions, requiring more training on concussion management at the youth level, etc. So maybe we need to get behind some of these course corrections. Maybe I and others can be more selective about what kind of hits we thrill in and reward with our cheers and repeated views. And maybe the few CougarCorner readers that have an influencing relationship with the BYU program can encourage Coach Mendenhall and others to step up their efforts to address this problem. Maybe no more Geneva Rock Hit of the Half, or at least none involving the head.



Here's just one quote that has a tie in to an issue we've discussed about BYU football: "On that point, football players could probably benefit from fewer full-contact practices. 'There's so many damn drills,' says [concussion expert Dr. Robert] Cantu. 'You don't need all this one on one, helmet on helmet macho stuff.'"



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Florwood wrote:
Maybe no more Geneva Rock Hit of the Half, or at least none involving the head.

I'm sorry but there was maybe one good hit shown on the scoreboard last year as the Geneva Rock Hit of the Half. Almost everytime they showed that "highlight" I turned to the person next to me and said: "are you kidding me, that was the best hit of the half?" Maybe BYU already has been employing this policy.

We can solve this with 3 little words:



"Two Hand Touch"

33311710 wrote:
We can solve this with 3 little words:



"Two Hand Touch"

:P

As long as football remains a high speed, full contact sport there will be concussion problems. It's why I won't encourage my boys to play football. I love to watch it, and every American boy wants to be a football hero, but the long term physical punishment isn't worth it to me. Track, baseball, golf, cross country--all good. Football--not for me.