Marshall using external helmet padding at practice

[Ataylor1989x]

http://www.wvgazettemail.com/sports...s-football-practice-with-new-look-for-helmets

You can scoff like a stubborn old guy or you can conclude that head injuries are going to destroy the sport if we don't take new approaches. You have to figure that enough hits are taken at practice that this can't hurt, and there's no need to look cool at practice.....especially when QB's have been under no-hit rules at practice for decades.

 

[Caliknight]

http://www.wvgazettemail.com/sports...s-football-practice-with-new-look-for-helmets

You can scoff like a stubborn old guy or you can conclude that head injuries are going to destroy the sport if we don't take new approaches. You have to figure that enough hits are taken at practice that this can't hurt, and there's no need to look cool at practice.....especially when QB's have been under no-hit rules at practice for decades.

The article references lacrosse programs using them. I wonder if that is true. I have never heard or seen these before on lacrosse players.

 

[RU1977]

Makes sense

 

[seels2662]

Why would I scoff? If this will allow for more full contact practice, it is great. Watch how good Marshall is out of the gate now.

 

[MoobyCow]

I like it. I'm really happy to see the issue being taken seriously.

 

[vkj91]

few things, I don't think anyone is scoffing at it. Even stubborn old guys. However, I do think it's overblown. Every big hit doesn't cause a concussion and every headache, seeing stars, or stumbling a bit isn't a symptom of one. Every team at every level is taking precautions and have been for years. Most youth programs have their coaches become "heads up certified", limit the amount of contact both per practice, and per week as well. We started teaching our kids Rugby style tackling as well this season.

 

[wicker]

Ohio State used outer padded helmets in early 1960's. Recent tests on the idea found friction between two padded helmets leads to neck injuries. There are many skeptics that say this approach won't help

 

[Knight Ed]

Ohio State used outer padded helmets in early 1960's. Recent tests on the idea found friction between two padded helmets leads to neck injuries. There are many skeptics that say this approach won't help

It wouldn't be to tough to develop an outer layer that has a slick surface.

 

[MozRU]

I am very old school. But not a moron like coaches who didn't allow water at practice (you brain is the first go when dehydrated).

I am cool with these padded helmets. But the Ivies are doing better: No full contact during the season.

I played throughout college. I agree with this. After preseason, games are brutal enough.

 

[vkj91]

I am very old school. But not a moron like coaches who didn't allow water at practice (you brain is the first go when dehydrated).

I am cool with these padded helmets. But the Ivies are doing better: No full contact during the season.

I played throughout college. I agree with this. After preseason, games are brutal enough.

Very few college teams hit in any great amount during the season. The NFL even less so. I don't mind colleges going to less and less contact but it worries me a bit with younger kids. They need to learn proper technique and the only way to learn is to do it. Definitely need to limit the amount, types of drills, etc but to just get rid of it will actually Cause more injuries in my opinion.

 

[MozRU]

Very few college teams hit in any great amount during the season. The NFL even less so. I don't mind colleges going to less and less contact but it worries me a bit with younger kids. They need to learn proper technique and the only way to learn is to do it. Definitely need to limit the amount, types of drills, etc but to just get rid of it will actually Cause more injuries in my opinion.

Now, when it comes to kids, I am really old school. The complaints of concussions today is absurd. Helicopter parents with weak slacker kids. Yes, you get that one kid who gets lit up. We talking .01% here guys. But we live in a world where the .01% are shaming us to change what we are doing.

No reason to go full tilt each and everyday day, but kids can handle it. We played football in the back yard every single day. And we were fine. There is nothing wrong with two 75lbs kids getting after it. Even 100lbs. I find it very sad when I hear parents not letting their kids play football. There is no better TEAM sport, one you must practice, work, sweat, deal with adversity, prepare 99% of the time, unlike other sports where you play game 99% of the time.

When you hit HS, then you need to start dialing it back.

 

[wicker]

The safety issue that cannot be fixed is the force at which players collide today.

 

[gef21]

Spending the last 14 years coaching I have a lot of interest in concussion prevention. I am a bit confused about how the padding helps. The way I have had doctors explain concussions to me is that the brain is smacking the inside of the head (from a massive blow). How does the padded helmet stop the brain from smacking?

The new definition of a concussion is that it can be actually be caused with ZERO CONTACT. An example I was given was a runner can get concussion from the repetitive movement of the brain smacking into the side of the skull.... Literally anytime a kid tells a trainer, or a dr, that he has any type of headache he will be out for some time.

 

[Scarlet1984]

My son has played football since third grade. I believe the greatest amount of hitting in practice (including helmet to helmet) was in Pop Warner. (Which was stupid.) Less hitting in high school practice and even less so in college (FCS).

He got a concussion this year in Spring practice that would not have been prevented with padded helmets. A defensive player's helmet connected under his chin and the force of his head snapping back caused the concussion. I wasn't there. My son said it was a clean hit.

As a parent, it's concerning and a real dilemma. Playing football and being on the team makes him happy, but the risks seem high.

 

[RU848789]

Problem solved...

 

[theRU]

i always thought they could have soft outer shells on the helmets. No need for them to be solid.

 

[theRU]

Now, when it comes to kids, I am really old school. The complaints of concussions today is absurd. Helicopter parents with weak slacker kids. Yes, you get that one kid who gets lit up. We talking .01% here guys. But we live in a world where the .01% are shaming us to change what we are doing.

No reason to go full tilt each and everyday day, but kids can handle it. We played football in the back yard every single day. And we were fine. There is nothing wrong with two 75lbs kids getting after it. Even 100lbs. I find it very sad when I hear parents not letting their kids play football. There is no better TEAM sport, one you must practice, work, sweat, deal with adversity, prepare 99% of the time, unlike other sports where you play game 99% of the time.

When you hit HS, then you need to start dialing it back.

Sorry but these kids are bigger and faster than previous gens. Look at a school profile in 1940s vs today. Must be the chemicals in the food.

 

[AntiG]

probably wouldn't be a bad idea if they instituted these in live games. at least then we won't have as many overreactions during games on big hits.

 

[gef21]

Now, when it comes to kids, I am really old school. The complaints of concussions today is absurd. Helicopter parents with weak slacker kids. Yes, you get that one kid who gets lit up. We talking .01% here guys. But we live in a world where the .01% are shaming us to change what we are doing.

No reason to go full tilt each and everyday day, but kids can handle it. We played football in the back yard every single day. And we were fine. There is nothing wrong with two 75lbs kids getting after it. Even 100lbs. I find it very sad when I hear parents not letting their kids play football. There is no better TEAM sport, one you must practice, work, sweat, deal with adversity, prepare 99% of the time, unlike other sports where you play game 99% of the time.

When you hit HS, then you need to start dialing it back.

In my 14 years of coaching (youth, high school, and college) I have seen 3 legit REAL concussions. 1 was my player (FS) hit a TE high (legal hit then illegal hit now). The TE was knocked out cold and the FS walked away amped up then passed out. The 2nd was a kid on a KR being face masked into the turf while being tackled. The awkward angle took his face into the ground. Took him months to recover. The 3rd was a kid on kick off was running down the field and was blind sided. He flipped in the air, landed on his head etc. Everything else in my career seems to have been precautionary stuff.

 

[Scarlet1984]

In my 14 years of coaching (youth, high school, and college) I have seen 3 legit REAL concussions. 1 was my player (FS) hit a TE high (legal hit then illegal hit now). The TE was knocked out cold and the FS walked away amped up then passed out. The 2nd was a kid on a KR being face masked into the turf while being tackled. The awkward angle took his face into the ground. Took him months to recover. The 3rd was a kid on kick off was running down the field and was blind sided. He flipped in the air, landed on his head etc. Everything else in my career seems to have been precautionary stuff.

That just doesn't ring true to me. In ten years of playing, my one son has had two "legit REAL concussions", which were diagnosed by doctors and which I personally saw the obvious symptoms: dilated pupils, headaches, inability to concentrate. And which were the result of direct contact to his head.

So, it would seem that my son's concussion rate (which is not extremely high) is about 20x what you have experienced.

The thinking reflected in your post comes through in subtle ways to players and subtly discourages reporting head injuries.

 

[GoodOl'Rutgers]

These external pads.. I am a bit worried it will cause neck injuries even if it cuts down on concussions.

Helmets came about because people wee dying from bare heads striking bare heads... noses broken and driven into brains, that sort of thing.

The helmet had to get hard in order to support a facemask that could protect the nose and face. Maybe they need bike helmets and catchers masks. Take the helmet as a weapon out of the equation.

 

[DJ Spanky]

Problem solved...

Beat me to it!

 

[DJ Spanky]

Next up:

 

[rufanpops]

i played high school football in the late 90's and in my 3 years on varsity, I suffered 4 concussions that I can assure you were definitely real, never missed more than a week, but still had symptoms (nausea, memory problems, headaches) when I returned 3 out of the 4 times. 3 out of the 4 happened in practice, the 4th was in a jv game sophmore year on a helmet to chin hit I delivered to the qb on a blindside corner blitz where he broke his jaw and I suffered a concussion. I don't see how the padded helmets will help though, players just need to be taught not to hit with their heads. No helmets like in rugby might be a better solution.

 

[topdecktiger]

The safety issue that cannot be fixed is the force at which players collide today.

This is the underlying problem. There simply is no way to make an inherently dangerous activity safe.

 

[gef21]

That just doesn't ring true to me. In ten years of playing, my one son has had two "legit REAL concussions", which were diagnosed by doctors and which I personally saw the obvious symptoms: dilated pupils, headaches, inability to concentrate. And which were the result of direct contact to his head.

So, it would seem that my son's concussion rate (which is not extremely high) is about 20x what you have experienced.

The thinking reflected in your post comes through in subtle ways to players and subtly discourages reporting head injuries.

I 100% tell kids to report anytime their head hurts immediately to a trainer. If they have had no contact and say their head hurts I tell them to sit down, have some water, take their helmet off and if the head ache continues to see a trainer.

I have seen multiple kids diagnosed with concussions who suffer zero symptoms of concussion (besides a head ache). They pass an impact test, they do not have issues with light, with noise, or concentrating, and they do not feel sick BUT they had a headache, their parents took them to a doctor and the doctor is ALWAYS going to say out for concussion protocol.

I am sorry your son has experienced two concussions. Once you have had one concussion your percent goes up for chances of having another one. I had a true concussion as a player (continued to play) and suffered from post concussion syndrome for almost a year. I had headaches non stop, couldn't concentrate, etc.

I take all injuries extremely seriously but concussions are diagnosed at an extremely high rate now (especially when visiting a family dr).

 

[scarletman2723]

My little brother has had 3 concussions. The first one ended his football season early in 7th grade, the second one came while playing in a travel basketball game in 8th grade that put him out for 3 weeks. The last one happened his freshman year of high school and knocked him out of school for almost 3 months. To this day he still suffers from post concussion syndrome with horrible anxiety and depression being the center of it all. He also is not aloud to play contact sports anymore and his doctor wouldn't even clear him to play baseball. Scary stuff concussions are.

 

[robcac26]

Spending the last 14 years coaching I have a lot of interest in concussion prevention. I am a bit confused about how the padding helps. The way I have had doctors explain concussions to me is that the brain is smacking the inside of the head (from a massive blow). How does the padded helmet stop the brain from smacking?

I think the idea is that the padding softens the impact more than the hard outer shell, so the brain doesn't hit the skull with as much force.

 

[Scarlet1984]

I 100% tell kids to report anytime their head hurts immediately to a trainer. If they have had no contact and say their head hurts I tell them to sit down, have some water, take their helmet off and if the head ache continues to see a trainer.

I have seen multiple kids diagnosed with concussions who suffer zero symptoms of concussion (besides a head ache). They pass an impact test, they do not have issues with light, with noise, or concentrating, and they do not feel sick BUT they had a headache, their parents took them to a doctor and the doctor is ALWAYS going to say out for concussion protocol.

I am sorry your son has experienced two concussions. Once you have had one concussion your percent goes up for chances of having another one. I had a true concussion as a player (continued to play) and suffered from post concussion syndrome for almost a year. I had headaches non stop, couldn't concentrate, etc.

I take all injuries extremely seriously but concussions are diagnosed at an extremely high rate now (especially when visiting a family dr).

I hear you. Seems like you have a reasonable perspective.

 

[Phi_1055]

A friend happened to mention the device and study referenced in this article. He has a friend who is involved with it, who told him that testing is going very well and they are optimistic to have something on the market in a few years.

http://www.bendbulletin.com/health/1786449-151/altitude-may-affect-concussions

 

[Knight Ed]

I think the idea is that the padding softens the impact more than the hard outer shell, so the brain doesn't hit the skull with as much force.

Think about driving your car without shocks or riding a bike with tow flat tires.

 

[robcac26]

Think about driving your car without shocks or riding a bike with tow flat tires.

Huh?

 

[Friend of 112]

Middle Tennessee is taking this approach as well
Link