Many parents and students have their reservations when it comes to football, and it is completely understandable given that football is a contact sport. However, in 2013, a program named “Heads Up” was created with the intent of increasing the safety of football players in Fairfax County. The program was officially launched and effectively implemented across all schools in FCPS. “Heads Up” draws attention to safer tackling techniques, highlighting the importance of protecting the head and neck.
Although safety protocols seem to be in place, football is still a very dangerous sport when compared to others, such as golf, swimming, track, etc. The possible risk of students suffering injuries creates concerns amongst some parents.
“I worry about physical injuries whether it is a single injury or multiple. Head injury is probably my biggest concern in regard to the injuries” said School Counselor Kelly Ellis.“Football is the only contact sport my child has shown an interest in. My child currently participates in other non-contact sports (swimming, golf) and just recently added flag football which is also non-contact. While other sports carry hazards with injury, contact sports such as football seem to accumulate more injuries. With that being said, is the media sharing more information on injuries for contact sports vs. non-contact? At times, it seems that media or what you may read can skew your opinions.”
It is very important for a coach to provide communication and honesty to parents in order to keep a transparent relationship. At the end of the day, parents are putting trust in coaches when letting their kids participate in sports.
“I do not feel informed based upon my experience with football so far. I have read through the concussion protocol required by the state to participate in athletics, but do not fully feel informed regarding how the coaches will protect the child from injury or how they will educate the players on how to stay safe while actively involved in football,” said Ellis.
Although all sports have a degree of risk, certain sports, like football, seem to create more distrust than others; even when injuries are very much present in them.
“I know this sounds crazy, but of all my students, I see more concussions in cheerleaders and soccer players than in football players,” PE teacher Ryan Healy said.
When it comes to football, the potential risk of players suffering grave injuries is a major concern for coaches. Keeping students safe is a priority, and there are measures and equipment in place in order to assure the players’ safety.
“As a coach, I have seen a lot of football-related injuries. I am assuming you are getting at the concussion stuff? If so, we do a lot of concussion prevention exercises such as neck drives, neck strengthening, and weight training in general,” said Healy. “Guardian caps were invented a few years ago –it’s a protective device put over a helmet to cushion head collisions. They are very effective. Additionally, the new helmets out now are much safer than even five years ago.”
