“Brain damage…has been found in a sixth deceased former NFL player age 50 or younger,” a New York Times article reports.
Brain injuries are surfacing more and more in athletics, particularly football. This past year, in North Carolina alone, two of the three football-related high-school deaths were due to brain trauma.
Craig Eilbacher, instructor & coordinator of sports medicine, has done extensive literature research with a focus on high school deaths and has also submitted an editorial to The Dispatch, Davidson County’s newspaper.
“In a typical football season, 250,000 concussions occur in football across the United States, not includ(ing) the number of competition-based head injuries that go unreported,” Eilbacher wrote in his editorial.
Eilbacher does not believe this is a problem with Quaker football. He thinks Guilford has a well-trained staff, including certified athletic trainers (ATC’s) as well as team doctors who make a presence at each home game.
“(The trainers) are very knowledgeable in managing concussions and head trauma,” said Eilbacher.
This is not where the controversy lies, however. Because Guilford is a Quaker institution, there is debate whether or not the ethics of football follow our code of values.
“The school should be very informed as (the football program) goes forward,” said Visiting Assistant Professor of Sociology and Anthropology Martha Lang. “If evidence becomes more compelling, Guilford should stay on top of the situation, and if a pattern becomes clear, should take that into consideration with their football program.”
It is not football that Lang is against, per se, but rather allowing students to knowingly do harm upon themselves, which is a Quaker objection.
“This subject is at the tip of the iceberg,” Lang points out.
There is not enough research or evidence available to convince institutions to cease funding for their football programs, as they are still around. However, because Guilford is a college that encompasses qualities such as integrity, ethics plays a role.
“Athletes need to understand when they need to seek medical help,” said Eilbacher.
Not only is it important for the college to show moral behavior, it is also important for student athletes. It is problematic when an athlete does not admit they are hurt or does not know when their bodies have had enough.
“Eighty-three percent of college football players who sustain a head injury symptom during play fail to tell a team physician, athletic trainer, or coach,” said Dr. Larik Woronzoff-Dashkoff, a doctor at Methodist Hospital, in the Family Practice News.
Because of this, college physicians are working with ATC’s in testing athletes before the season starts. This gives an idea of how much damage a concussion can cause, including memory loss, slower reaction time and cognitive changes.
“Colleges across the country in general are doing baseline testing with football players,” said Quaker football ATC Liz Dornbos. “This recording helps us identify changes in athletes before and after getting hit, so coaches will abide by physician and ATC protocol.”
According to Eilbacher, “Football in general – high school, college and professional – is looking at proper procedures and putting together policies (to make football a safer sport).