The beginning of the end?

[The Roamin' Umpire]

I feel like the bearer of bad news lately...

http://usatodayhss.com/2015/two-minnesota-doctors-urge-football-to-be-eliminated-from-schools

[ncwingman]

As long as there have been sports in schools, there have been calls to end sports in schools. I don't see this as anything new.

I can, and would support, a movement to try and adjust attitudes about contact in football that might help mitigate some of the serious head injuries. In a Jules Verne inspired distant future with flying cars and jetpacks, all tackles must be rugby style, wrap up tackles and the Big Hit gets eliminated. We've taken one step in this direction with the new targeting rules, but this takes it all the way to the point where any sort of shoulder or arm charge would be illegal personal contact even if it's below the shoulders.

[Shoottv]

   This year we had 2 major injuries in my Friday Games. First was a bad tib/fib open leg fracture that was just one of those things that happens.
   Second was a hard open field hit that got great applause but left the tackler with a broken bone in his neck. He's in a hard brace but will be OK and will probably play again.(Mom may disagree).
   I think we're at the tipping point in high school ball that "go out there and stick the guy" old attitude has to change.
   30 years ago when I was in HS our offensive line was under 200lbs Most about 175. Now my daughters school doesn't have a starter under 300.
   I did study my high school physics enough to know that F=MA and we're simply exceeding the body's ability for kids to take the punishment.
  It's probably time to look at wrap up tackling for high school and getting the medical physicists involved at the NCAA and NFL level.

[Ralph Damren]

100 years ago boxing was THE sport of teenage boys.
  Not as many boxing teams today as then.
   Is football going in the same direction???
      What direction should the football rules committees go???

IMHO, football builds character , teamwork (only exceeded by synrinised swimming) , and life lessons for the youth of America but it needs to be as safe as we can make it. I've always been one for "let the kids play" and try not to be  happy. We need to put emphasis on "let the kids play safely" and be  happy on excessive and unneeded contact.  .....Any suggestions, guys?

[ncwingman]

Any suggestions, guys?

My suggestion is mentioned above. Make hits for the sake of hits that are not attempts at wrap up, to the ground tackles illegal contact. An effective legal block only needs to create separation between the defender and the runner. It does not need to knock the defender down, so knocking him down violently would also be illegal personal contact.

With the targeting/spearing and unnecessary contact rules already on the books, at first, it's just a broader case book interpretation. If you hit a guy and he goes flying, that's unnecessary -- even if he's got the ball, even if it's below the shoulders, even if he's a potential blocker or tackler.

Remember ESPN's Jacked Up segment? They'd replay vicious hits and heap praise on the players who made them. If your hit makes somebody think, "You got jacked up!"... well... 

There's going to be a lot (mis)interpretation and a lot of annoyed coaches at first, but that's going to be necessary to make any significant cultural change.

[gdp1018]

There is a very simple answer that will take away spearing/targeting. 

TAKE THE HELMETS AWAY.  This will force people to tackle the correct and not lead with their heads. 

[ncwingman]

There is a very simple answer that will take away spearing/targeting. 

TAKE THE HELMETS AWAY.  This will force people to tackle the correct and not lead with their heads.

I understand what you're saying, but I disagree that it will solve the problem. I've seen several "clean" hits this year that were shoulder to chest, no helmet contact, but caused the player's head to "whip" -- and he was down for the count. Taking the helmet away won't stop that hit.

On the contrary, I was not in a game this year where we had a targeting or spearing call. Kids around here, at least, seem to have learned to keep their head out of the play.

We need to take the "hit", not the helmet, out of the game to reinforce the proper tackle and block.

[breckjr]

We have got to go back to the basics and emphasis good hard nosed tackling, not knocking the guys head off.  And it can't stop with the coaches, we have to change the whole mentality of football, including the parents.  Nothing burns me more than being at a youth game all you hear a parent yell "Cream him" or "Knock his Block off". 

[VALJ]

The "blow up" hit is one of the worst things in the game.  Plus, how many times a game do we hear a coach yelling "wrap up" on the sidelines?  I don't know how we can legislate that tackles need to be wrap up tackles, but if we could, that might go a long way...

[Ralph Damren]

IMHO, we need to send a message with our  . In a pre-season scrimmage, we had 5 flags for excessive contacts. A veteran coach of an often state championship team inquired : "Are you guys going to be that picky once the season starts ". 3  were on his team, 2 on the opponents - I responded : " We want the players to think we are ." Coach replied : "I get the message, they will be taught."

His team wasn't flagged for excessive contact anymore throughout the season.

His team didn't lose any games throughout the season.

His team received a gold ball to add to their trophy case.

......Morale of story : You don't need to "de-cleat" a team to beat a team.

[yarnnelg]

Do the Minnesota Doctors have the ear of Governor of Minnesota? Do they have the ear of the State High School Athletic Department? It's a report and will find it's way into the round can at the end of the desk.

[BrendanP]

I was watching the MI 8-man championship game the other night, and the MHSAA is running ads featuring mothers of football players proclaiming that serious injuries are at an all-time low and that football has never been safer.

(On a side note, happy Thanksgiving everybody! I'm back home in California for the holiday, and I'm surprised that as jet-lagged as I was yesterday that I'm up this early! )