Date: 10/18/15
Summary: This Friday night, we lost another high school football player, the 6 death from U.S. high school football this year. His name was Cam'ron Matthews and he was described to be, "a great kid, athlete, strong in his faith & a friend to many." Matthews at one point said to his teammates that he felt dissy just before halftime and then he collapsed on the field due to a seizure. Now, as we look at the big picture we see that in 2014 there were 5 deaths out of the 1.1 million high school students that played football in the U.S., died due to the sport and the other six died due to other causes non-related, such as heart problems etc. In 2013, there were eight U.S. high school football death directly related to the sport. We wonder why all these deaths and injury are happening in the sport and we realized there are multiple reason why many young adults and kids get hurt playing this sport. One of the reasons is that the skill level of the players allows them to be more susceptible to injury. Also, "...nearly 70% of high school athletes with concussions played despite their symptoms, and 40% reported that their coaches didn't know of the injury, according to a 2014 study in the American Journal of Sports Medicine,". And finally we see that a big reason that all these injury's keep happening is the lack of full-time trainers in high schools, due to the cost. People say that high school sports are getting safer and that they are trying to limit the amount of full contact practices coaches can have so hopefully in the future these numbers will go down and we can just play football.
Questions: Do you think the amount of these injury's will ever go down? If so, how do you think we can change the game so it is safer? Finally, would you let you child play high school football?
I don't think that the number of injuries will ever go down. I understand that eventually there might be less deaths every year, but these athletes are twisting their ankles, dislocating their shoulders, and getting concussions. That just comes with the territory of playing a contact sport, and I don't think that there is anything we can do to change that fact. I think we need to encourage players to report their injuries and make it so they won't get penalized for it. Many players are afraid to report their injuries due to losing their spot on the team, or not being the number one player. Encouraging players to stay safe is how we can eventually hopefully get less injuries. I would not let my child play football. I don't think playing a sport that could potentially harm him would be okay with me, especially how often they happen scares me.
ReplyDeleteI believe that the amount of injuries will go down with time. We are taught to use better form technique when creating contact as well as ways to prevent injuries. When someone does get injured, the best thing for the athlete to do is notify the coaches, athletic trainer, and/or see the doctor if any at all. It is important to stay safe and that mentality starts with accepting an injury and learning how to recover with full strength and rehab, rather than brushing it off and continuing to push the body to its limits. I would encourage my child to play the sport as it is much more than just hitting. The sport can create strong brotherhood bonds between the players that can last a lifetime. I believe the sport is heading in the right direction with better equipment and information awareness on how to be safe when playing football.
ReplyDeleteI believe that the amount of injuries will go down with time. We are taught to use better form technique when creating contact as well as ways to prevent injuries. When someone does get injured, the best thing for the athlete to do is notify the coaches, athletic trainer, and/or see the doctor if any at all. It is important to stay safe and that mentality starts with accepting an injury and learning how to recover with full strength and rehab, rather than brushing it off and continuing to push the body to its limits. I would encourage my child to play the sport as it is much more than just hitting. The sport can create strong brotherhood bonds between the players that can last a lifetime. I believe the sport is heading in the right direction with better equipment and information awareness on how to be safe when playing football.
ReplyDeleteIt's hard to say whether or not the number of injuries will ever go down, but I think we can come up with new ways to help prevent the more severe injuries, (such as concussions). It's hard to change the sport itself, but football teams can change the way they practice to help prevent injuries. Teams can start implementing injury prevention practices, which practice agility and take more time to strengthen players' ankles and knees. If my child wants to play football, I would let them play because, like Sage said, I think it is a great way for kids to meet new people and bond with their teammates. If my child does happen to get injured, then I would make sure they heal fully and properly before they go out to play again.
ReplyDeleteI believe that the number of football injuries will decrease over time based on rule and policy changes however the amount of deaths will remain the same. This is because no amount of changes can stop the random occurrence of a death. A highschooler dying from a football injury is an extremely rare tragedy and something like that will always happen eventually even if the sport does become safer. In order to change the sport to allow for less injuries the hiring of trainers is a must. Left to themselves athletes and coaches will make the wrong decisions regarding the play-ability of the athletes. A trainer will stop a lot of athletes from recurring injuries. I believe you have to be crazy to play football and I don'y want them to be crazy, so i wouldn't let my kid play football.
ReplyDeleteI think that the amount of injuries that go hand in hand with football will go down in the future. With better technology and innovation, they can create helmets and other football pads to be much more protective. Head injuries are very prominent in the game, but with improved materials and structure of the helmet, it can help limit them. They also need to earn to share what is causing them pain or what is making them not feel well. The faster they can discover that, the faster they can be helped. The sport itself can not be changed, or it wouldn't have the same nature. I think the awareness to the injuries that can be cause and realize what you can do to prevent them will ultimately lessen the number. They are heading forward, but it will take time to actually improve the sport.
ReplyDeleteFootball is a contact sport and when a parent and child sign up, they should understand this. Making more rules and limiting what children can do during the games will not fix the problem. This would not solve un-related health problems and would therefore not solve the injury problem. If there were more physical therapists and coaches, the players would receive more help and knowledge on how to keep themselves safe. Knowledge is the only thing that can lower the injury rate. I would let my child play because it is a good experience and I am confident in my knowledge on injuries and health problems.
ReplyDeleteFootball is a contact sport and when a parent and child sign up, they should understand this. Making more rules and limiting what children can do during the games will not fix the problem. This would not solve un-related health problems and would therefore not solve the injury problem. If there were more physical therapists and coaches, the players would receive more help and knowledge on how to keep themselves safe. Knowledge is the only thing that can lower the injury rate. I would let my child play because it is a good experience and I am confident in my knowledge on injuries and health problems.
ReplyDeleteI don't think the number will ever fully go down but I do think it will decrease. Football is a sport of injury, there is no way around it. Just sports in general increase the risk of injury, you could run into a wall or trip and twist your ankle. It is not guaranteed that a sport, especially football, will ever be 100% safe. I believe that if football is changed, it won't be an interesting. As human beings, we seem to have a natural adrenaline rush from intensity, something a football game is full of. Much like the cartoon depicts, football feeds the thrill to those who aren't willing to risk their own lives. If my child interested in football, I would let them play. But I would make sure that my child is safe and the minute he or she is in danger, I would take actions to ensure that he or she won't severely injury themselves.
ReplyDeletePerhaps by enforcing rules on quality headgear and padding, we can make sure that at least these concussions won't happen because of faulty protective gear. However, like Haley said, football by nature is a contact sport. IT would never be able to completely limit the danger that football poses for kids. You have to be aware of the danger when your kid signs up and coaches should make sure that their players don't play with concussions. Available physical therapists would help too. I would let my child play football if they really wanted to, but very hesitantly. I would make sure they knew the dangers beforehand.
ReplyDeleteI think that the number of injuries will not decrease. It is not as much a matter of the quality of equipment as it is a matter of the intensity of the sport. As football is often regarded as "the American sport", families and coaches put extreme pressure on the players to do well during games, leading to increased aggressiveness. Many players yearn to continue playing in college, leading to increased personal pressure as well; most players would rather play through a game with a concussion rather than sit out. Personally, I would not like my child play to football, just because of the pressures and the risks invovled. However, if my child really wants to pursue the sport, I would encourage them to do what they want while making sure that they were safe.
ReplyDeletePersonally i don't think these numbers will ever go down however i believe that it is the fault of the player. First of all, the players realize this is dangerous and concent to realizing that it is possible for the injuries and all injuries sustained to be life changing and even fatal. The sport is dangerous and although it may be interesting it is too dangerous before significant advancements are made. In the NFL most players that play a lot, leave and have an aditional life expectency of 25 years after leaving. They mostly develop mental illnesses and multipul concussions.
ReplyDeleteAs much as I'd like to hope that the number of sports injuries in high school will eventually decrease, I believe that the reality is they won't, not unless something within sports culture drastically changes for the better. There is a certain pressure that athletes have on the field and that pressure is not going away. As mentioned in the article, athletes are still playing despite serious injuries. If I ever had children, I would not like them to play football at the level that is expected in high school. I wouldn't want to risk them getting concussions or seriously injured just because of the pressure they have over a sport. However, like Reanne, If my child really wanted to pursue the sport, I would support them but make sure certain measures are taken in order to ensure proper safety for my child.
ReplyDeleteI think the number of football related injuries could possibly go down but many changes need to be made. Many changes have already been made from leather helmets to more advanced protective helmets, but there is no way to get around how much physical contact is involved in the sport. Injuries will happen, yet with more training on proper techniques and how to make contact can make playing football a much safer ordeal. If my child wanted to play football by no means would I prevent him or her. I would be sure to make sure they understand the magnitude of injuries and not to overlook them as well as providing them with the proper techniques and training.
ReplyDeleteThe number of football related injuries is less from the nature of the sport and more from the lack of discipline that football coaches have envoked into hitting. Coaches should be spending entire summers dedicated to safe form for hitting and being sure to keep your head out of the play. Due to lack of focus on one of the main aspects of the game there will continue to be injuries and possible deaths.
ReplyDeleteThe number of football related injuries is less from the nature of the sport and more from the lack of discipline that football coaches have envoked into hitting. Coaches should be spending entire summers dedicated to safe form for hitting and being sure to keep your head out of the play. Due to lack of focus on one of the main aspects of the game there will continue to be injuries and possible deaths.
ReplyDeleteWhile it is important that people recognize that it can be done safely, it is important to realize how difficult it is to do properly and maybe people on the High School level should not be trying to do it.
DeleteI can't say for certain whether injuries will go down. The issue here is that football is a high-contact sport. So while there can be more padding added to uniforms, there's no real way to reduce risk. Finally, in conclusion, if I had a child who wanted to play football, I'd make it their choice. However, I'd make sure they knew the dangers of the sport before they signed up.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Noah; Football will and always remain to be a semi-dangerous sport, barring any major rules change. Basically, players are rewarded for hitting other players as hard as they can and as fast as they can. In addition, they are given a false sense of security with their helmets and padding. While these may save a person from a single catastrophic blow, small consistent hits are the ones that cause the most damge. The only other comparison can make to Football is with professional Rugby, which is played without pads and helmets. While head injuries likewise plague Rugby leagues, the players themselves do get by without protection, having to exercise more caution. One possibility for football would be to try to make it less essential to completely launch oneself at the other player, or risk facing serious injury. However, I cannot see this happening without a major change in the rules so that Football would become unrecognizable, not acceptable for most people.
ReplyDeleteA lot of good comments. I respect Nick & Sage's opinions on the camaraderie & need for proper form. I coached 7th grade football & we didn't have the time to work on fundamentals as much as I wished. Last, a friend of mine died on the field in 1992, but he was playing the game he loved. Tough situation...
ReplyDeleteI don't think the numbers of injury and death will go down, there is too much testosterone that people will always get hurt. Players get caught up in the game and wouldn't be able to stop injuries. It's the nature of high school boys and football in general. The only ways to protect players is to limit the number of full contact practice and to get more practice on the fundamentals. It's hard to do both but it's the only way. I would prefer my child not play football but if they really want to then I won't stop them.I will not encourage it though.
ReplyDeleteI suspect that eventually injuries will go down because of the amount of safety technology that will be developed over the next few years. We already have more padding than a few years ago. I think the development of this technology will absolutely help. I probably would let my child play high school football. It is the choice of my child to decide whether he/she plays.
ReplyDeleteBased on my own experiences playing football, I conclude that no matter how the game is played injury is prone to happen. When the objective of the game is to run full speed at each other and try to score a touchdown, there are things u need to understand. Its like you drive cars into each other and see which one wins. The one with the most mass will take out the other, as long as the NFL keeps looking for big tall girthy men, injury's will always be a part of the game. I wont encourage my kids to play or to not play football, its their decision and i will support whichever one they decide.
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