Yahoo.com - New York Prep Football Team Cancels Season Following In-Game Death Of Damon Jones

[SemperFi Skins]

Janes, who was 16, had reportedly walked to the sidelines following a hit against Portville (N.Y.) High on September 13, but the junior running back and defensive back was soon carted to a nearby hospital, where he was pronounced dead three days later.

"I would like to commend our coaches, football players and their families for their continued strength and conviction during what has been one of the worse times we have ever experienced," school board president Jeffrey Greabell announced, per The Observer. "Our hearts are truly broken and our thoughts and prayers continue to be directed to Damon's family, classmates, his friends and his teammates. This is a time that is sacred and should be protected. Grief, while shared, is unique to each of us.

 

 

Read the rest of the article at the link below...

 

http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/highschool-prep-rally/york-prep-football-team-cancels-season-following-game-145922121.html

[Ozymandias]

Wow. Must have been a crazy hit, or just a hit in the wrong place.

[skinsmarydu]

RIP, Damon.  Our prayers go out to your family & loved ones.

[Chew]

that's awful.  I'm assuming head trauma after a vicious hit...

[Going Commando]

This is a terrible tragedy. It was only a matter of time before someone died playing the game. Football needs serious reform, especially at the youth level where neurological injuries are absolutely devastating.

If nothing changes, eventually someone will die at the college or NFL level--on TV.

[pjfootballer]

Steve, this is not the first football player to die from an injury on the field.

[Sticksboi05]

This is a terrible tragedy. It was only a matter of time before someone died playing the game. Football needs serious reform, especially at the youth level where neurological injuries are absolutely devastating.

If nothing changes, eventually someone will die at the college or NFL level--on TV.

 

It's not the first time.  Helmet technology needs to improve, period.

[Bang]

Could be he had an enlarged heart, or one of those other hidden problems that ends up killing an athlete. Wouldn't be the first time.

Hank Geathers comes to mind.

Wait for the autopsy.. it's all we can do.

 

~Bang

[Going Commando]

Steve, this is not the first football player to die from an injury on the field.

I found this article on wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Health_issues_in_American_football

It says the average number of deaths directly attributed to football are a little over 4 a year from 1991 to 2007. From 1970-1990, it was 9.5. And before that, it was an astounding 18.6 per year. Swarms of people must have died in the leatherhead era.

Less people are dying on the field but the indirect fatalities, and fatalities resulting from subsequent neurological damage and disease remain high. It estimates that 40,000 concussions are suffered a year in H.S. football. That's an epidemic. And I'm not sure you're going to improve helmet technology enough to deal with that Sticksboi. The game itself will need reform--changes to the kind of contact allowed--in addition to improving protective gear. And you're going to have to change the culture so that everyone understands neurological injuries are a huge deal. Right now people treat them like they're nothing.

PBS is set to air a documentary on the danger of concussions in football called League of Denial. It excoriates the NFL for the role they play in suppressing awareness of the risks of the game. The NFL has an obligation to the entire game to be leaders in developing the sorts of reforms and technologies the game needs to survive. The league's record on the issue is disgraceful. And they've cowed ESPN into under-reporting the issue. I heard the reviewer for the film talk about how the NFL gets compared to the tobacco industry, but he noted a key difference is that people haven't thought tobacco is good for young boys in a long time--if ever. Lots of people still think football is good for young boys. Ouch.

[Corcaigh]

It estimates that 40,000 concussions are suffered a year in H.S. football. That's an epidemic.

It's likely far worse than that as concussions are massively under reported and undiagnosed by the Athletic Trainers because the kids don't want to stop playing.

From another source ... "Anecdotal evidence from athletic trainers suggests that only about 5% of high school players suffer a concussion each season but formal studies surveying players suggest the number is much higher, with close to 50% saying they have experienced concussion symptoms and fully one-third reporting two or more concussions in a single season."

What we really don't know is how damaging all these minor concussions are.

[Major Harris]

It's not the first time. Helmet technology needs to improve, period.

Helmet technology has been steadily improving for years. The schutt air helmets that were the awesome in the90s and early 2000s are relics now.....DNA and speeds are so far advanced beyond what we had as kids.

We need more emphasis on technique and we need to call penalties when they occur.

But football is and always will be a dangerous sport.

[pjfootballer]

Well, this is sad of course.  You never want anyone to die.  And Steve, I agree that things have gotten tremendously better over the decades and we all can hope that it gets to the point where no one will die, but your initial post (how I read it) was almost like you couldn't believe something like this could happen in this day and age.  I like the numbers you posted from that article.  They're getting there with the player safety, but it's a rough game.  That's why only a handful make it to the pros.