Cal’s quarterback, Kevin Riley, hasn’t been playing as well as expected this year (completely crushing losses in the last two games). The coach put him in for a full half last year against USC, exactly a week after he suffered a concussion. Brain damage from repeated head impacts can take a long time to show up. Readers are cautioned to draw no implications from any individual example, nor from anecdotal evidence, nor from the scurrilous study reported last week about professional players, which in any case (i) has absolutely nothing to do with the all-American healthy pastime of big-time college ball, and (ii) who cares what happens to pro players after there’s no money to be made from them?
The Cal coach’s overriding concern is always for the welfare of his players, of whom more than half proudly graduate within six years from the school’s strong academic program, of which its scholar-athletes are rightfully proud. And no rules were broken last year; Tedford didn’t play Riley for the full seven day required wait. Seven days is obviously the safe time on purely medical grounds, because any longer and the player would miss a whole game.
Meanwhile, #1 Florida’s quarterback, who went to the hospital vomiting from his concussion last week has a full fortnight to recover, so there’s absolutely nothing to worry about. His coach, Urban Meyer, whose overriding concern is always for the welfare of his players, said so right out the day it happened: “I think it’s a concussion. I think he’ll be all right.” And who should know better?
Move right along, folks; nothing to see here; just kids having fun and a lot of money being made. Not by them, of course; that would be terribly corrupt and shred their moral fibre. By all those people whose overriding concern is always for the welfare of the players.
http://www.mahercorlabs.com/news/article-20090831.htm
The latest research peer reviewed by the Academy of Sports Dentistry and a Harvard MGH specialist, suggests a retainer like Mouth guard used in the NFL and with such programs as the University of Texas, should be considered as part of a return to play protocol. One concussion and your six times more likely to have another, this protocol identifies and corrects a known link to the concussion origin. http://www.mahercor.com
I’m sympathetic to the pain these guys go through after they get it, but at the same, you have to remember that they volunteered to play. That’s especially the case on the college level - these guys can always walk away (the pro guys are on contract, although there are usually ways out).
Brett,
I don’t believe that anyone thought that college football players were forced to play at gunpoint. College kids (and they are kids even if they are a year or two past 18) are unaware that they are mortal; hence they smoke cigarettes, play football, and engage in other stupid and dangerous activities. Adults should not facilitate these activities, whether by selling them cigarettes or running football teams.
I don’t know how many of you have had a concussion as an adult. About ten years ago I got hit in the head by a 25-pound hulk of frozen beef at a restaurant where I was working. Wandered around for a while and collapsed. I missed three months of work, but really I wasn’t right for at least six months. Mood swings, short-term (and long-term) memory loss, not being able to walk a straight line (I accused the neurologist of having a slanted floor). I remember getting into a screaming argument with a woman at Workman’s Comp. I ended up calling her back and apologizing. I told her my problem was that normally I would never have lost my temper and started yelling at her but that was what the concussion was doing to me. that I was angry and and not thinking straight. That was the last problem I had with Workman’s Comp. Losing brain function is a scary, scary thing. Eventually I recovered though I still can’t remember incidents and people so well from that time. A year later I was in a minor fender-bender got banged in the head and was diagnosed with another concussion. I decided that anyone who would willingly put themselves in a situation where multiple concussions were likely was just crazy and should not be allowed to go back into that situation .