High school football

Vector Mouthguard Season Wrap Up: Product Review and Impressions

Dustin Fink5 Comments

I find myself in a peculiar situation in regards to the Vector Mouthguard; I have indeed benefited from the relationship as mentioned in the first post about this product. However, I have also been honest and blunt with them while dealing with the product. I have made every attempt to be as objective and neutral on any product or research on this blog, in cases where my integrity may have been perceptually challenged I have noted such.

However, I have looked at many blogs about various products and come to the conclusion that this post is going to be an in-depth product review with my honest feedback. You, the reader, will have to trust – hopefully based on my track record – that it is an unbiased assessment. Heck this is just like the YouTube toy reviews that my and your kids watch constantly, minus the video and my ugly mug.

Enough with the mental hand-wringing and on to the after-season report on the Vector Mouthguard (you can catch up from previous posts with “It’s Actually Happening…“, “Day 1“, “Seeing Is…“, “Practical Application…” and “Ready for Primetime“). The last post about the mouthguard was prior to the first game and our team went on to play 10 games so there were a lot of happenings in regards to the Vector, I could write 3000 5000 words on it but no one would read all of it. I will try to bullet the ups and downs as well as noteworthy case uses. At the end I will attempt to address the common questions I had about this from other professionals, parents, coaches and kids. In advance, thanks for your time and if you have further questions hit up the comment section or my inbox.

Immediately the system had media attention about what we were doing for player safety at the high school as the “strange-looking” mouthguards were on the kids as well as a radar looking device on the sideline. Still in the quasi-euphoric/excitement stage of the process there was this interview that I did (completely independent) and captured the first three weeks of the regular season.

During that time we did have some individual mouthguards that were not functioning as planned/expected and some charging issues with the base units. Through conversations with the tech team at i1biometrics we were able to get everything going that was outside the norm. This is a key piece to note; the customer service was unbelievable and agile. Granted there were not thousands of systems in use and none of them had a loud-mouthed blogger running them, it was still what I can see this company continuing to provide for anyone with this product. A lot of the service could be done remotely or via mail. The grasp of the system and the actual engineers that are part of the solution team make it what it is.

As mentioned I didn’t quite know how or if this was going to change how I “did” things as an athletic trainer. Upon the month-long reflection and review after the season I noticed that I did change what I did. I started using the information provided to put a watchful eye on certain players and to confirm what I did see with my eyes. Or in one case I used it to see what happened to a player that I did not witness but my coaches told me about happening in a game. The system had started to provide me eyes that I don’t have but I never really relied on those eyes, but was happy they were there.

During games I started to Continue reading →

Gridiron Heroes and the Movie

Dustin Fink4 Comments

mv5botqxotq2ntixmv5bml5banbnxkftztgwotazotu3nte-_v1_sy317_cr60214317_al_Being part of the concussion space there are many different things that come to my inbox. Much of that is garbage and thinly veiled attempts at advertising for something that I am not interested in.

A couple of weeks ago I received an email about a movie that I had heard of in passing; Gridiron Heroes. I did not know what it was all about but the co-director, Seth Camillo, encouraged that I see this. He never said it was ground breaking but told me it is “documentary about the important issue of brain and spinal cord injuries that are sustained on the football field.”

I was given the opportunity to screen the film and I must say that I was not disappointed by the hour and 17 minutes. (Trailer below)

It begins with a overview and reason for a foundation called Gridiron Heroes Spinal Cord Injury Foundation; the injury and subsequent paralyzation of Chris Canales. Although rare in occurrence this type of injury does happen on the football field. Instead of being overwhelmed by this difficult situation and blaming the game the Canaleses went about helping others that found them selves in this unfortunate situation.

Catastrophic injury and death should never be tolerated in sport, but like in life there are circumstances where they happen in freak accidents. This is not unlike car accidents that are no fault of anyone and understanding that life comes with some risk. The Gridiron Heroes Spinal Cord Injury Foundation set upon trying to heal and help those that have no clue what is happening and how to come to grips with the “finality” of these injuries.

The movie interviews former professional players – most notably Decon Jones’s raw and honest opinions, “players in the game” like Alan Schwarz, as well as those afflicted regarding the sport and where it sits in their eyes. The movie even takes on the issue of repetitive brain trauma and concussion.

This movie is not about tearing down the game/sport it is about facing the realization that football can be a risky endeavor for some and that instead of ignoring and looking past the issues, taking them on is the better way to approach this.

I am not a movie reviewer, per say, but I can tell you that this is worth your time and money (all profits from the film go to the Gridiron Heroes Spinal Cord Injury Foundation). This would be appropriate for anyone that is around football a lot like coaches and parents. It is not intended to scare but to inform, mainly about the foundation, but about the sport.

Seth Camillo and Andy Lauer did a fine job of telling a trying story not only of Chris Caneles and those like him, but of the sport of football.

You can get the movie on iTunes, Amazon Instant Video, Walmart Entertainment, Google Play and Dish Network.

If you have seen it feel free to comment on it, here.

Ready For Primetime

Dustin Fink4 Comments

This post is a continuation of the ongoing in the wild review of the Vector Mouthguard System. You can see the previous posts about what I have experienced to this point by clicking on the hot links. As always if you have questions please comment, email or tweet I will do my best to answer.

The system has been on site and in the hands of the kids and I for the past nine days; the good is far outweighing the bad at this point. However, there is plenty of things that I have yet to figure out or apply, rather figured out how to apply. Tomorrow is the first game action, a point in this trial that I am both scared and excited about for the Vector Mouthguards. Time for the bright lights.

I am not scared or apprehensive about the overall performance of the data that I have been seeing thus far. One thing that I can firmly state at this point is that the perceived accuracy and consistency of impacts below 50g is all that I hoped and more. As the practices have progressed and I have reviewed the hitting drills by film, the hits of the interior lineman and linebackers seem to show on almost every play where there is full effort. This would match up with my line of thinking about football (as a reminder I have my system set up to report impacts of 10g or greater), this is a collision sport. I guess at this point I wonder if I am collecting a lot of “noise” in the system because the amount of hits it is recording. I do want to see the overall number of hits collected by the kids but if the 10-20g range of linear impacts are doing nothing other than that, it makes me think. On the other side I do want to have that data in case a kid were to be injured and it was a very low threshold.

The not so awesome thing at this time is the frequency of the anomalies I have seen. The last number I remember seeing for total hits that the system had captured was nearly 2,000 (4o players for 8 days of practice, about 6/player/day) and that number seems about right to me. But, the real issue is of that nearly 2,000 data set there are 12 hits that have exceeded 80g on the monitor and none of them “looked” like an 80g hit on film, in fact some there was no contact. Granted this can happen with technology, some part of an algorithm that didn’t weed out this report. Upon review I was able to identify four of these instances: one was previously mentioned with a player yelling (I have since reboiled the mouthguard and have not seen from that sensor), one was a player whipping out his mouthguard and kicking it while it still had some spit on it, and the other two were the cause of a coach tapping – rather slapping – the mouthguard on the helmet after taking it out of a players mouth to mess with me. In regards to the last two instances the good thing is that this only happens one time because the mouthgurad deactivates when the slobber is off.

Continue reading →

Practical Application of Data: VMG

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Before practice the coach, I should say coaches, wanted a report from me about what I had seen and how the system was going. I showed them the video from the previous day and where on the head the hits were registering for our worst offenders of dropping their heads at contact (verified). I also noted that some of our starters were getting more hits collected than the average teammate.

The head coach made it a point to tell the assistants to address the players that were leading with their head to correct that during our form tackling and to reinforce during live action to get the eyes up. Then after that was all done he came to my training room and asked me about how many hits and how big some of the players were getting.

I had noticed the previous two days what these 30 and 40g hits looked like and they were above “normal” collisions but not “make the crowd go oooh” type hits. He inquired about the big hit that the LB/RB took in that drill mentioned in the earlier post. I told him it was below 50. He wanted a number of hits that the kids had taken, for what other than his information I had no idea, and boy was I wrong and in a good way.

It was pretty simple the RB/LB combo players had taken the most with an average 22 in two days (day one shortened due to lightning), next were the RB only with an average of 15, then the DL with 14 and the OL with 11. Not as many as I expected, but then again our coach is very limited in hitting drills. In a five-minute segment they maybe get off 12 plays at the most and there are no more than six of those a day.

This is a good point to also tell you that these are “thud” drills, we have had one five-minute of live all season so far to go along with our 1’s vs. 1’s for four plays at the end of the day.

At most you could see 72 impacts a day, if you were in on every single rep of thud action in a practice. The starters probably see about 70% of the reps so we could expect to see at most 51 impacts in a practice. And in day two most any starter registered was Continue reading →

Seeing Is… Starting… To Believe (Video Link)

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Inside DrillWith one day of the Vector Mouthguards in the book – a lightning shortened one – and a warp speed implementation it was time to get this puppy up and running.

The players had not lost a mouthguard overnight, which is quite amazing because they always seem to lose their other ones, and all were on the chargers overnight. The clock struck 5:30 and it was go-time. The antenna receiver on the sidelines and players not wondering what it was going to feel like, just getting to practice.

As the system fired up the tiny computers in their helmets were reporting to my laptop, one green light after the other, it was working as promised. A few of the mouthguards took a minute to “warm up” with spit, I guess, but when it was time to hit I had nearly all on-line. Of the 40 issued, 32 were communicating with 2 of them on injured personnel (not concussion), we will get more in-depth about that later.

As practice started I did not want to be tethered to the computer so I could do my job as an athletic trainer so I left the base station and went about my business. The way our coach practices is in five-minute segments, flying around. It is high intensity and constant moving on my part to keep a keen eye on where it is needed and on who it is needed. I basically forgot it was over there other than the occasional parent or media asking what that “radar” looking thing was.

At the first water break I stepped over to see the computer and the hits it had captured. I was able to scroll through all the registered hits in about two seconds and only stopped on any that were above 40g. The graph like output of the system makes this a breeze. I also had noted that every hit is time stamped so when there was a hit that I thought should be captured I made note of the time and cross referenced that in the system, and yes they were there.

As the team went to a segment with inside run drill work it happened to be next to my base station for filming purposes. I yelled up to the camera operator and asked if the film time stamps and he said no. Because I had two students with me I was able to hold the tablet and look at that between reps. After every play the screen changed with more impacts; the DL, LB and RB getting the lions share of the notices. I was impressed at the speed and accuracy of the information given to me in real-time. But, one of the LB’s who was delivering the hits on D was also rotating on O as a RB and his mouth guard was not communicating, I was a bit concerned. Was this really going to keep the data in the mouthguard until it was able to communicate, like they promised? Was I going to miss out on some of his hits. And just then…  He was smashed by the defense right to the left earhole. He was none worse for wear but it was a noteworthy hit as the team yelled out due to the collision like all other teams do when that happens. He was just fine and I didn’t even take a step towards him.

As practice progressed all was going well, I was taking notes on times of hits and they all looked good and none that I found concerning in viewing them live or on the data. That’s when I scrolled across a player that had taken the largest hit seen, a Continue reading →

Vector Mouthguards – Day 1

Dustin Fink1 Comment

Don’t get to excited, I don’t think I will give you daily updates about the Vector Mouthguards but I do feel that the first day is important on many fronts, including: customer service, supplies, and ease of use out of “box”.

I had previously met with the kids individually and emailed the parents to open a line of communication about what was coming and what we could expect. I also told everyone about my expectations for this system. I received many questions from the kids that I could easily answer (looks, weight, how it works, “will my braces mess it up?”). The parents really only cared about performance and many were excited about it, even the parents of the kids that were not selected to wear them.

We ended up getting enough money to outfit 40 players so I had so select a group of kids that I thought would be a good cross section for what I wanted to know from this. I chose the following people: all varsity starters on both sides of ball except for QB, the 2’s that would be getting the most work on the scout team, players that would play both JV and Varsity, and the remaining were players that are probably not going to see much action – mainly on their own volition in practice or games (if you know what I mean). Within that group I have 4 players that have previous history of concussion, including two that have multiple concussions in their past. This I feel represents the kids that will see the most possible impact throughout the season.

I received the shipment yesterday and included were the mouthguards (lanyards number stickers), the chargers, a computer, the antenna for the system with a tripod and a carrying case for it. All was set up and ready to rock after getting the players and mouthguards into the system.

Today, Tanner Nussbaum from the Green Bay area drove down to help with the fitting and getting system up and running, and hew as on time and ready with all answers to any questions I had conjured up over night. We had the 40 players meet at 1:30 for fitting and computer inputting with final instructions, the last players were done after an hour and 20 minutes. It all went rather smoothly, minus some Continue reading →

More Concussions in Practices or Games?

Dustin Fink3 Comments

There was a recent study released that has turned some heads in regards to where all the concussions come from in sports. In this JAMA Pediatrics study appearing at the beginning of the month the investigators have concluded that American football practices were “a major source of concussions” for all three levels of participation studied (youth, high school and collegiate).

Often when we see this type of information released there can be confusion due to the limitation of each individual study. The above data reflects a single sport, football, as compared to other data often cited that deals with all sports. Case in point this National Institute of Health study; which reports “athletes tend to have a higher risk of concussion in competition as compared to practice.”

The discussion topic of where concussion occurs more is not only often debated but it is an important set of data because we can control for one side of this equation, practice.

Reading the JAMA article one might be confused about the conclusions if you were to look only at the data and not have complete context of both the sport and participation. The rate of concussion was extremely higher in competition versus practice yet the majority of overall concussions came from practice. This can be explained by noting that there are far fewer games – thus exposure – and fewer participants in games – thus exposure. The sample set for the data (JAMA) was fairly robust: 118 youth football teams, 96 secondary school football programs and 24 collegiate programs. Ages of athletes exposed were 5 to 23, presenting a very good cross-section of the sport at all levels it is being played at. This information was collected in 2012 and 2013, and the researchers collected over 1,100 concussions over that time frame.

The NIH study breaks down the information for 13 different sports in high school and college only. Their findings Continue reading →

Being From IL, People Want To Know What I Think of Law Suit Against IHSA

Dustin Fink6 Comments

Sq 300 JI have been asked by many people what my thoughts are on the first law suit filed against a state high school association in regards to concussion.  With this coming in my “home” state of Illinois, people figured I would have a strong statement or unique perspective.  I have struggled with coming up with exactly what I wanted to say and could not figure out why.  This is in my wheelhouse, commentary on recent and public events; one would think it would have been natural.

Then, I figured out why I couldn’t come up with something…  BECAUSE I ALREADY DID, 29 MONTHS AGO!!!

Almost like I could see into the future.  Below is what I wrote here and sent off to the Illinois High School Association in May of 2012.  Looking back on it I still feel strongly in the proposals and the rationale.  Take a quick look for yourself:

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I have been working on this letter for a little while but was really spurred to action by the parent in Maryland, Tom Hearn who discussed his concerns with the local school board.  I have tried and tried to use the “chain-of-command” with these thoughts and ideas, however at every step I got the feeling I would have to go alone on this, so I have.  This letter may or may not reflect the opinions of my employer, high school, athletic training sanctioning bodies, or others I am involved with.  This letter is from a concerned individual who feels I can spread the message effectively by these means.  I have emailed the letter, proposals and the Sports Legacy Institute Hit Count White Paper to all Executive Directors and Board of Directors of the Illinois High School Association.

OPEN LETTER

May 15, 2012

Illinois High School Association
c/o: Marty Hickman, Executive Director
2175 McGraw Drive
Bloomington, IL 61704-6011
(309) 663-7479 – fax

Dear IHSA – Executive Directors, Board of Directors and Sports Med Advisory Board:

I am writing this letter to address the growing concern of concussions in sports, mainly in football.  It should be noted that football is not the only sport with a concussion issue; however this sport combines the highest participation, highest risk, and highest visibility.  This letter should not be construed as an attack on the sport of football, but rather a way to keep the sport continuing to grow.

As a licensed and practicing Athletic Trainer, researcher, commenter, father, and survivor of too many concussions, I feel that in order to keep the sports we love, proactive steps must be taken.  Often being proactive is a painful process and easily dismissed because of the trouble it will cause.  I urge all involved to think about what the future of all sports will be if nothing is done.

The Illinois State Legislature with the IHSA took the initiative by creating a mechanism of concussion education and awareness in response to the mounting scientific evidence of potential long-term impairments resulting from mishandling of this injury.  However, this only represents a first step in the process; passing out a flyer or having parents and athletes initial that they have read the information is one small element of the issue.  Another crucial element of the issue is coaching. We must ensure that those we entrust with the care and leadership of our children understand Continue reading →

NFHS Develops Concussion Guidelines for Football

Dustin Fink7 Comments

In what has been a long time coming the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) has released the long-awaited guidelines from their concussion summit in July.  The NFHS is basically the governing body that most, if not all, states look to when implementing rule changes in sports, policies for participation and for sports medicine advice/guidelines.  Many states do not act, even with good information, with out the NFHS “seal of approval”.

This has been evidenced in the past when it comes to concussion “mitigation”, in terms of undue risk – contact limitations.  There have been many states that have not waited for the NFHS (California, Arizona, Wisconsin come to mind) while there are others that sat on their hands regarding this topic.  Regardless of where your state is/was it now has some guidelines to follow when it comes to the controversial topic of impact exposure.

Before I post the full press release from the NFHS, I would like to highlight the recommendations from the 2014 NFHS Recommendations and Guidelines for Minimizing Head Impact;

  • “Live” and “Thud” are considered full-contact
    • I really like that there is a clear definition
  • Full-contact should be allowed in no more than 2-3 practices a week; 30 min a day and between 60-90 minutes a week.  Only glossed over was the fact that theNFHS strongly suggests that there should not be consecutive days of full-contact.
    • A great place to start, although there are a vast majority of programs, around here, that do not do more than 2-3 times a week.
    • The time limits are great.
    • Unaddressed is the specific back-to-back days of games to practice.  For example a Monday game and Tuesday full-contact practice.  Sure common sense should prevail, but there will be plenty of loophole finding on this issue.
  • Recognition of preseason practices needing more contact time to develop skills.
    • Obviously a sign that these guidelines are taking everything into consideration.
  • During 2-a-days only one session should be contact.
    • THANK YOU!
  • Review of total quarters played for each player
    • This has been one of my biggest points of contention with any concussion policy.  The risk for injury during a game is much higher and kids that play multiple levels have an exponentially higher risk.
    • Although nothing more was stated than above, this should get people talking and moving.  The issue, of course, will be monitoring this.  Regardless, the fact that this important point is included is a massive thumbs up!
  • Considerations for contact limits outside of traditional fall football season
    • Acknowledging the ever-growing practice of off-season practices.
  • Implementing a coach education program
    • Ideal for understanding all of this and the issues we face.
  • Education of current state laws and school policies (if schools don’t have one they should)
    • Putting pressure on the institutions to take some onus.
  • Emergency Action Plans (EAP) and Athletic Trainers should be utilized
    • AT’s should be at both games and practices.
    • EAP’s should be in place and the best person for taking care of an EAP is an AT.
    • The first “governing” body that has firmly suggested the use of athletic trainers for football at all levels in practice and games.  This is truly noteworthy, and appreciated.

Auspiciously omitted from this document was USA Football’s “Heads Up” tackling program.  They referenced the USA Football definitions of level of contact and coaching courses; but never mention the embattled “Heads Up” program.  I must say, my confidence in the NFHS has skyrocketed after reading this, and a lot has to do with the people on the task force.  I am looking squarely at: Mark Lahr, Tory Lindley, Steve McInerney and John Parsons.  Those gentleman are of the highest quality and character when it comes to athlete safety.

Here is the full press release…  Continue reading →

Constantly Learning and Watching: There is a Time to Act

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It has been a truly busy season – in regards to injuries – where I perform my “day job”.  I was going over some records that I keep and this season has been the busiest in my 15 years.  In fact, when discussing with peers they too have had a high volume of injuries in the training room.  I would say it is karma; last season we were as slow as I could remember.

Part of what I do in my job is to evaluate the injuries and determine if there are any that could have been prevented.  Certainly preseason preparation – weights and conditioning – is a huge factor and we did that here, but there is always a place to learn and watch to make adjustments.  In reviewing the injuries (over 50 – not all concussions) I’ve encountered that required medical care beyond the athletic training room the results were “good”.  Only three were incidents that I considered “preventable”, one of which I posted about weeks ago. That is less than 10% of injuries that could have been prevented, which is good, not great, but good.  In years past I have seen numbers as high as 25-30% of injuries that I deemed “preventable”.  I take pride in doing my job and if I can prevent every single incident and only have injuries that occur on a “random” basis I will take it (has yet to happen in my 15 years).

Before we go further, I would like to give a glimpse into how I review injuries.  We will use a tib/fib fracture we had this year; this player was injured in a game and to me that is “un-preventable”.  However, a few years back we had a tib/fib fracture that occurred in practice – a practice with only “uppers” on and players were not supposed to take anyone to the ground – that incident was considered “preventable” to me.  If players and coaches were vigilant to the rules of practice that player would never have been rolled up on during a tackle.  Concussions are similar…

I feel that concussions can be “prevented” in practice with contact limits and proper technique during drills.  The other two incidents, thus far, I deemed preventable occurred in practices and were concussions.  One player was hit by a teammate during a non-contact soccer drill as a “joke” and the other did not use good judgement and ran into a pile and was rocked.

The take home here is that most injuries are part of sports and we must accept this.  Also, athletic trainers have much more to worry about and analyze than most think.

All of the observation and learning also pertains to return to play; whether that be orthopedic rehabilitation or concussion return to play protocol.  We, as athletic trainers, must express our voices when there is something going on that is a player safety issue.  This can be as simple as modifying team warm-ups all the way to the case I had yesterday.

One of the concussed kids was on his final step for RTP (full contact practice), he is Continue reading →

One Man’s (Athletic Trainer) Critical Eye and Observation From Week 1

Dustin Fink3 Comments

It’s the beginning of high school football season across this glorious land.  I honestly love nothing more than getting back on the gridiron with the high school kids.  There are so many intangibles that the beginning of any sport brings; and in our massive consumption of football world this sport seems to bring a lot of people together, quickly.  You will see a lot of this “love for the sport” breeding through my posts and rants – the same love I have for all sports.  Seeing kids overcome hurdles and demons and using sport/activity to express their selves is awesome.  Seeing boys and girls using sports as a conduit to become better men and women by learning virtues such as: integrity, commitment, discipline and expecting to succeed.

Over the years I have obviously developed a keen eye for concussion as it relates to sport.  There is no greater sport for this injury to occur at my high school than football.  I have been blessed with coaches and administrators that listen to my input regarding overall safety, particularly when it comes to concussion.  But this past week I noticed something that perhaps I had seen plenty of times before, but it just finally hit me.

It has to do with the practice collisions and how things that start innocently enough can change and create issues.  I must give my head coach massive credit for being on the same wave length and even finishing my sentences when we were discussing my observations.  It shows, to me, that he has the best interest of the players in mind – and he wants a fully healthy team.  Secondly I happened to read a recent research paper about data collection on forces in football (while writing up my Sensor Overload post).

In a simple “technique” tackling drill two players were approximately five yards apart.  To either side of the players were agility bags spaced at about 4 yards.  The purpose of the drill was for the ball carrier to angle run to either bag, while the defensive player was to use proper technique and wrap up the ball carrier – not taking him to the ground.  The players were outfitted in helmets and shoulder pads only.  The players were directed to begin at “3/4” speed and the ball carrier was to be willing to let the defender use current “proper technique” to achieve the form and fit for a tackle (face mask up, wrap-lift-drive through the man).  It started all well and good, and the players naturally began to increase their speed/effort as they became comfortable with the drill.  The drill lasted five minutes from setup to finish.

Upon completion of the drill – rather near Continue reading →

Arkansas Looks Into Hit Limits

Dustin Fink1 Comment

Over two years ago I sent an open letter and proposals to the Illinois High School Association (IHSA) regarding hit limits in football.  Some took this as a “candy ass” approach and one that was not needed.  I disagreed with that assessment, in fact, I felt that what I wrote at the time was proactive and could be a way for this state to be a leader in the area of protection in concussions;

I am writing this letter to address the growing concern of concussions in sports, mainly in football.  It should be noted that football is not the only sport with a concussion issue; however this sport combines the highest participation, highest risk, and highest visibility.  This letter should not be construed as an attack on the sport of football, but rather a way to keep the sport continuing to grow.[…]

Recent evidence suggests that even the subconcussive hits – those that effectively “rattle” the brain but do not produce signs or symptoms – become problematic as the season wears on, let alone a career.  As the researchers in this field gain focus and more specific diagnostic tools, I feel we will see damning evidence that will put collision sports in jeopardy as they are currently constructed – the key being “as they are currently”.  There can be a change, both positive and proactive, that will signal to everyone that the IHSA is taking this matter seriously and can set a nationwide standard.

Needless to say it was brushed aside and was ignored, except for a kind email saying things were happening behind the scenes.  Now, two years and one month later there could be a 12th – TWELVE – states that have contact limits in place for high school football; as Arkansas looks into the matter;

According to reports, the Arkansas Activities Association has passed a recommendation to ask school superintendents to cut full contact practice time to just three times during game weeks. With one of those being the game itself, it leaves just two days of tackling if the proposal passes.

Jason Cates is the lead trainer for Cabot High School, and the former President of the Arkansas Athletic Trainers’ Association, he says, “Something has to be done.”

“The more studies that are showing that hit counts do count and add up.”

The Arkansas proposal limits the full contact days to three, opposed to the two I proposed, but it seems to me that others have seen the light.  That light is both the end of the tunnel and the oncoming freight train.  Kids need Continue reading →

Rules of the Game

Dustin Fink6 Comments

I have waited about five days to collect my thoughts on this and honestly let my emotions calm a bit.  As some know I can be a bit outspoken and harsh at times but I wanted to refrain from letting emotion get in the way of an important message.  Yes, this post will be mainly about football, but don’t view it as an attack on the sport so many of us, including me, love.

This season across all the levels of play in football there has been a larger emphasis placed on player safety, most notably contact to and with the head while playing football.  It is a FACT that the helmet in football was designed and remains a protective device not a weapon or offensive piece of equipment.  Using the helmet in the later fashion is and should always be a penalty for both sides of the ball.  This is nothing new; since the mid 1970’s “spearing”, “face tackling” and “butt-blocking” (scroll to page 32 of that link) have been outlawed in the sport.  However, routinely those events on the football field are rarely called, now in 2013 there is an emphasis on these types of infractions.  Now there is a caveat of this type of action on the field called “targeting” which at the college level can have a player ejected if egregious enough. (BTW, that picture is a placard that was made in 70’s)

Before I go further, I would like to say that officiating at the high school and lower levels is a thankless job.  The pay is not life changing and most do it as a hobby.  Sure, I have seen some officials that the game has passed by or is too fast for them, but I have also seen men and women that do Yeoman’s work with nothing more than a handshake for a job well done.  It’s not easy folks, I have done it, but done correctly and consistently it is a thing of beauty.  At the college and pro levels these people do great work and often have other jobs besides being on TV and getting players, coaches and fans mad at them.  I can assure you they are doing the best they can.  But, I feel the game of football resides in their and coaches hands, for survival.

At the high school level in our state I know that officials have been told to watch out for targeting and the use of the helmet above the shoulders; this has helped at the cost of adjudicating the other, more established rules from the 70’s.  I have seen four flags in five games for “targeting”/”spearing” above the shoulders; I have seen zero flags for “spearing” when it was below the shoulders.  I didn’t write down every occurrence of these types of tackles in each of my games, however, I can vividly recollect at least 10 instances of spearing on both teams.  Side note here, if I see one of our players do it they get quite the ass chewing from me on the sidelines.

People need to realize that tackling with the head-down is not a safety measure for the person getting tackled, it is a safety measure for Continue reading →

Head Football Coach ‘X’: How to take a stand on player safety

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Working on a cause is difficult, especially if you are trying to swim upriver. When the cause is in direct conflict with the juggernaut that is football it becomes even more difficult – even at the high school level. I received and provided counsel to this individual as he fights a good fight in regards to player safety, most notably concussions. I applaud this individuals effort, attention to detail, player first mentality, and his willingness to sacrifice his job. What we have below is a microcosm of the issues we face with concussions; detailed and beyond sufficient for action – that is not being taken except against this author.

This information was obtained mainly through email strings – all identifiable properties have been painstakingly scrubbed to the best of my knowledge. It has been understood and agreed upon by the author that publication of this information may identify him and place him in further jeopardy. He is willing to take that chance and I am willing to provide him a platform. Unless otherwise noted in the post with breaks all of this is his and his alone. We shall begin;

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A Little Context:

At the start of my advocacy for safer measures to be applied to the competitive arena in high school football, I involved many people who I trusted and cared for in helping find my voice. Those people usually ended conversations with the same question:

“Are you willing to Get Fired for this?”

I laughed at the question considering the fact that I am advocating on behalf of measures that enhance Student Athlete Safety. At no point was my advocacy meant to be an argument, so the extent in which there has been resistance to proactive thinking has been quite a disappointing surprise to me.

The last 3 months of my professional career have been a whirlwind as I have gone from Advocate to Agitator. When the time for action came to blaze a trail for the future, and promote all that can be good on behalf of our student athletes, we collectively passed as a school system, even though a safer future for the thousands of kids who choose to play football within it is still very attainable.

Through my advocacy I have felt empowered by the leading researchers in the field of sports injury supporting these ideas. Support from the actual people who could make these changes has been “Hot & Cold” in a way that led to me presenting to the Athletic Administration of our entire school system and then being handed a letter of reprimand. At the current time I am labeled as a “Demanding” Coach and a person “Searching for a Cause”.

What follows is a chronological story of advocacy on behalf of player safety at the high school level as well as an example of how far away we actually are from a safer future for the student athletes who choose to play the sport of football.

Authors Note:

Some of the Main Points of Resistance in this philosophy have been diffused by simple logic when it comes to providing a safer arena for competition.

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ORIGINAL LETTER TO RAISE CONCERNS & TO START MY ADVOCACY
January 8th 2013
To: (School System) Director of Athletics ————————
CC: (School) Principal —————–, (School) Athletic Director ———————, (School) Assistant Athletic Director ——————

Subject: Public Health Issue regarding (School System) Cross-District Scheduling of Football Competition

I am writing to make you aware of a safety issue that our county has unknowingly placed many of our student athletes in through our recent scheduling for football. (School System) Athletics cross district scheduling policy for teams in the newly formed ——– District, while making sense from a convenience and perhaps even a cost basis, exposes athletes at certain smaller schools to a greater risk of serious injury. I share these concerns with other Head Football Coaches within (School System) as was voiced at the —————- 2012 All-District meeting.

(School System) scheduling policy requires each (Small School) District football team, which is made up of schools that have been classified at the 3A and 4A level in the (State League) to compete with three schools at the 5A classification from the (Big School) District for the 2013-2014 scheduling cycle. The 2013-2014 scheduling cycle determines opponents for each school’s next two (2) seasons. ——————— High School (——) is a 3A school that, based upon the recent scheduling for the 2013/14 seasons, is expected to compete with schools classified at the 5A level on six (6) separate occasions, schools at the 4A level 12 times, and similarly sized 3A classified schools 2 times in our next 20 scheduled games.

A schools classification is predicated upon the (State Association) account for each school’s student enrollment. That enrollment produces the available population to field athletic teams. (State Association) has outlined parameters identifying like-sized enrolled schools to view as competition throughout the state. (School System) scheduling policy has ignored these guidelines in which the (State Association) believes our schools can equitably, and safely, compete in the sport of football.

Current scheduling policy lacks the awareness of a significant and measurable increased risk of injury to the players at (School) and similar sized schools. What is alarming, and requires immediate awareness, are the findings of the most recent and advanced studies related to head injuries. These studies strongly suggest that (School System) scheduling policy as currently constituted, subjects student-athletes of the smaller schools, not only to a greater risk of injury but to a greater risk of serious head trauma Continue reading →

Banning of football as a whole is NOT the answer

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The goal of a writer is to bring eyes to their information/opinion to draw eyes for advertisers who in turn pay for the publishing of the article – in a very cut and dry manner.  With the troubles facing sports, particularly football, more and more articles have hit the interweb; often the most cited are those that trample on our beliefs of sport.

George Will penned an article that did just that as he opined that football should be ended because it cannot be “fixed”, a growing belief amongst some.  I am here to tell you that although football has its issues and concussions are high on the list, this is the case with many other sports; hockey, lacrosse and soccer being some off the top of my head.  Will does have some salient points;

After 20 years of caring for her husband, Easterling’s widow is one of more than 3,000 plaintiffs — former players, spouses, relatives — in a lawsuit charging that the NFL inadequately acted on knowledge it had, or should have had, about hazards such as CTE. We are, however, rapidly reaching the point where playing football is like smoking cigarettes: The risks are well-known.[…]

Furthermore, in this age of bubble-wrapped children, when parents put helmets on wee tricycle riders, many children are going to be steered away from youth football, diverting the flow of talent to the benefit of other sports.[…]

The lawsuits have nothing to do with the risk of injury, they have everything to do with whether the league knew about the long-term risks during that time and did not disclose that to the players.  The injury of concussion can occur outside of sports, in fact the majority of concussions come from recreational activities like: skate boarding, back yard touch football, playgrounds, bike riding and driving.  Even if the lawsuits are a reason for Continue reading →

Commentary on Proposal for Limiting Contact in HS Football

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It has been over a week now since I wrote the high school sanctioning body in Illinois about making a change to limit contact in high school football.  This was not done to promote myself, nor was it to hammer a sport many – including me – love.  It was an attempt to get out in front of the issue and make proactive changes to protect not only the players but the game of football.  It is a genuine good intention on my part.

Since the letter went out via email and on this blog I have had many responses from many different people and places.  There have been questions and comments about what was written and in this post I will address as many as possible.

Let us begin with the deafening silence on the issue.  As in only one email in response (24 sent out) from the IHSA and its board of directors.  That response was as follows; “Thanks, Dustin”.  Yup that is it.  Not that I was expecting an invitation to HQ to break this down but maybe some questions or comments or stonewalling, nope – nothing.

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Cost became a hot topic on this proposal.  Yes, I concede that hiring an athletic trainer will cost you some money, but seriously would you send you kid to a swimming pool without a life guard?  It is the same thing as sudden death, Continue reading →

Collecting Concussion Data: Massachusetts

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As part of the concussion legislation put in place in the state of Massachusetts, the public middle and high schools must report all head injuries/concussions to the state Department of Public Health.  Although plans have not been set for the actual purpose of the data collection, it can provide a snapshot of what high schools are dealing with.  As Lisa Kocian of the Boston Globe wrote;

Football and soccer players from 26 area high schools suffered more than 300 head injuries last fall, the first time athletic departments were required to collect data under the state’s new concussion law, according to a Globe survey.

Football players accounted for 207 of the injuries found in the survey, exceeding the totals on soccer teams at most schools. Girls’ soccer programs reported nearly twice as many head injuries as boys’ soccer teams, 85 compared with 46.

The sample set of data has been put in graphical form, click on the link above to see it.  The average injury reports Continue reading →

Sobering Early Research

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Last October, Purdue University released their first study on concussions and hits that high school players take in a season.  The take-away message from that initial study was;

Purdue researchers who monitored the helmets of 21 Lafayette Jefferson High School players found that players may be damaging their brains even if they have not been diagnosed with a concussion.

Another year and another set of data brings the West Lafayette group (Evan Breedlove, Eric Nauman, Lenny Leverenz, Thomas Talavage, Jeffrey Gilger, Meghan Robinson, Katherine E. Morigaki,  Umit Yoruk, Kyle O’Keefe, & Jeffrey King) – called the Purdue Neurotrauma Group – back into focus, now beginning to confirm their working hypothesis;

“The most important implication of the new findings is the suggestion that a concussion is not just the result of a single blow, but it’s really the totality of blows that took place over the season,” said Eric Nauman, an associate professor of mechanical engineering and an expert in central nervous system and musculoskeletal trauma. “The one hit that brought on the concussion is arguably the straw that broke the camel’s back.”

Using the same techniques of; neurocognitive testing, functional MRI and helmet impact telemetry the Purdue group Continue reading →

This Trickles Down

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Comments like these trickle down to the lower levels, either because the youth look up to players or their comments make ‘sense’ to them as football players;

“If I have a concussion these days, I’m going to say something happened to my toe or knee just to get my bearings for a few plays,” he told HBO’s Andrea Kremer during an interview for Real Sports. “I’m not going to sit in there and say I got a concussion, I can’t go in there the rest of the game.”

The above is attributed to all-pro linebacker Brian Urlacher and may be a popular/majority sentiment within the NFL locker room.  Brace yourself for the upcoming rant…

As professional athletes and adults I don’t think that players are exactly wrong in having these feelings, heck it is their job.  Given all the information about the lasting effects of all injuries and concussions players assume the risk.  That being said if they choose to abide by such comments these players should not be filing law suits after the fact.

The real issue is that comments like Urlacher’s Continue reading →

Lucky To Be Alive

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Adrian Padilla is lucky to be back where he wants to be, on September 19th he suffered a major brain injury that required emergency removal of part of his skull.  The fact that it was taken care of in time to save his life is a great thing, but after reading a story about his triumphant return to watching his teammates there was a passage that has me extremely concerned;

Padilla can recall everything that happened leading up to when he collapsed on the sideline at the San Luis Obispo game.

He said he had suffered a minor concussion two weeks before the game, but felt well enough to play. Everything seemed normal until he blitzed the quarterback leading with his helmet.

“After that, I got up and ran to the sideline and told coach what happened. He told me to go sit down, and I tried going to the bench and moving some bags. Then I collapsed,” Padilla said. “The next thing I remember was waking up in the hospital four days later.”

The fact that Padilla recognized Continue reading →

Can Small Schools (Districts) Handle The Concussion Issue?

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With all the measures now being put into place a very interesting question is: can all high schools handle this?  The simple answer to this is: NO!

Required education for the coaches, parents and kids can only go so far; I have even touted this as the most important factor.  However, once there is “live fire” will it all sink in?  I believe it will, but not for all.  From personal experience, the high school I am at we have been hard at the awareness part for the above mentioned “players” in the concussion game and there has not been a 100% retention on the information or actions.  I would say that roughly 75-85% of those involved have grasped the information and action points.  I feel that our school is in a rather unique position as well; one of vigilant follow-up and re-education, almost to the point of annoyance.  How many schools have this going on?  Continue reading →

McKee: Unpopular Changes Needed In Football

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Dr. Ann McKee of Boston University was at a one day symposium about brain injuries discussing the effects of repetitive injuries to the head.  Dr. McKee has been on the forefront of the chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) research has information that has changed her perception of the sport of football in particular (via Chicago Sun Times and Tim Cronin).

“It’s scary because we know so many people it’s affecting,” said McKee, a doctor of pathology at Boston University and the keynote speaker at Advocate Christ Medical Center’s one-day symposium on brain injuries. “You see so many individuals in the prime of life, both in the military and former athletes, people who are our heroes, struggling with life.”

Over a ten-year career she surmises that a linebacker may sustain 15,000 sub-concussive hits; those hits that do affect the brain but do not produce instant symptoms consistent with a concussion.  That is fifteen THOUSAND hits, hits that are similar to a low-speed vehicle accident.  The forces being produced are doing some damage in the brain, and the collective damage is causing problems that linger later into life; such as CTE and ALS (Lou Gehrig’s Disease).  To completely discount a “professor/doctor” because they don’t know sports would be wrong in Dr. McKee’s case; Continue reading →

A Calling For Ease: Drew Fernandez’s Story

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(Project Brain Wave)  High school football is one of the most exciting, defining, and proud markers of American culture, and is a level of play that to many, extends beyond being just a game.  The dreaded months of training camp, the long hours in the weight room and practice field, and the time spent studying playbooks to perfect a team’s system all contribute to the same goal—that being the unforgettable feeling of standing beneath the lights on a Friday night before your home crowd, set to take on the opponent you have prepared for.  This feeling that empowers our student athletes, that makes our parents proud and supportive, that makes our friends anxious to witness game day, is what the coaches and players live for.  High school football is defining, and is home to life lessons to be learned and experiences to cherish.  But for the Fernandez family, the high school football season of 2008 is one they will never forget.

Drew Fernandez, a young up and coming running back for his high school’s football program that was known for state championships in seven of the previous ten years, was productive both on the field, and off the field, executing plays on the field and performing well in his studies in the classroom.  His older brother had also been part of their high school’s championship legacy, and Drew was looking forward to contributing to such successes as well.  His first year in high school was in 2008, and it would be the first time he would have an opportunity to be a part of his hometown’s illustrious football program also.  According to his mother, Tracey, “football was everything to him.”

But such a mentality would soon be combated during one of his freshman football games, as Drew received the ball at running back during play, and then took hits from defenders in both the front and back of his head while he was being tackled.  Drew had sustained a concussion, and would be removed from play.  His mother told me of what events would then follow after her son took a blow to the head, resulting in his diagnosis.

“The trainer of the opposing team (the game was away) called me to tell me Drew suffered a concussion, and asked me if I wanted him to go back to school on the team bus or if he should call the paramedics,” said Tracey.  “I asked him to call the paramedics, and I met them at the ER.  The last thing Drew remembers from the day of his injury was riding on the bus to the game.  He has no recall of the trip to the ER via ambulance or anything thereafter until the next morning when he woke up at home.” Continue reading →

Congressional Hearing

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Today there was a hearing on the concussions and how they affect the student-athlete on “The Hill”.

Protecting Student Athletes from Concussions Act is what it will be called.  It is suspected that they will use language similar to Lystedt Law in Washington.

All of this is supported by the NFL and other sanctioning bodies.

CNN.com has a story

Sobering Research from the Past

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First appearing in the Journal of Athletic Training in 2001, Frederick O. Mueller found that;

A football-related fatality has occurred every year from 1945 through 1999, except for 1990. Head-related deaths accounted for 69% of football fatalities, cervical spinal injuries for 16.3%, and other injuries for 14.7%. High school football produced the greatest number of football head-related deaths. From 1984 through 1999, 69 football head-related injuries resulted in permanent disability. Sixty-three of the injuries were associated with high school football and 6 with college football. Although football has received the most attention, other sports have also been associated with head-related deaths and permanent disability injuries. From 1982 through 1999, 20 deaths and 19 permanent disability injuries occurred in a variety of sports. Track and field, baseball, and cheerleading had the highest incidence of these catastrophic injuries. Three deaths and 3 injuries resulting in permanent disability have occurred in female participants.
 
 
I would be interested to see this study reproduced in 2010 or 2011.  There have been some deaths recently associated and blamed on high school football the most recent was Andrew “Drew” Fremont Swank, of Spokane, Washington.