Football Takes a Hit On and Off the Field

Despite the continued success of football on both television and the box office, the sport's growth at the grassroots level is decreasing and nine high school football players have lost their lives playing the game in 2014. Even the President of the United States has said that if he had a son, he would not allow him to play organized football.

It's estimated that approximately 1.3 million high school students play football, and according to the Consumer Product Safety Commission, over 70 percent of them suffered football-related injuries.

Nothing New

This issue is not just a recent phenomenon or unique to any locale. Back in 1997, the Tulane School of Medicine’s Department of Orthopedics put out a study that found that Louisiana had one of the highest rates of cervical spinal cord injuries to high school football players.

Based on the national rate at the time, Louisiana should only have had one catastrophic neck injury every 14 years. Instead, the state was averaging 2.3 spinal cord injuries per year from 1990-96.

A more recent study that looked at the injury problem nationwide found that high school football players were suffering more serious injuries than their counterparts at the college or professional levels.

Still, numbers like that almost cry out for a Louisiana Personal Injury Lawyer.

An Avoidable Tragedy

Last spring at Louisiana’s Farmerville High School, 17-year-old Jaleel Gipson died after fracturing a vertebrate during the school’s spring practice. The injury came during a full-contact session known as the “Oklahoma drill,” where players run full speed at each other, continuing until one is on the ground.

Why did the coach, who called Gipson's tragic death an “unlucky event,” run such a violent drill four months before the start of the season. It could open up either the coach or the school district that hired him to a wrongful death suit, though none has been filed as of yet.

Drops in Participation

Horror stories like that have not disappeared or gotten any better, and are one reason why the Pop Warner youth football leagues saw a drop of 10 percent in athletes participating during the 2013 campaign.

Causes

Problems like these are usually caused by negligence in the way the player helmet was made or the way he was coached. The end result for a financially-strapped New Orleans area school can be the arrival of a New Orleans Personal Injury Lawyer.

High-Tech Efforts

College football teams have attempted to address the issue of concussions through the introduction of a high-tech mouthpiece at LSU that assesses head trauma from hits on the field.

It's an admirable effort, though most high schools will be hard-pressed to obtain funds for such devices, putting their players at continued risk.

Legislation To Combat The Issue

The issue is getting the attention of politicians, even rabid football segments like Texas and Alabama. California now limits high school football practices to three hours of live contact during the season and none in the offseason, with the aforementioned states also passing similar legislation.

If you or a loved one have been injured during sanctioned football activities, a Louisiana Personal Injury Lawyer can help you determine the validity of your case.