Much like the Roman gladiators and the Coliseum, football as we know it will be going away. No way any mom in her right mind will let her son play football with equipment and a helmet. Touch football and flag foot ball I think will continue. Granted the medical exams and the monitoring has greatly improved over the last few years to the point that they know, yep, your messed up. They do a brain scan at the beginning of the season so they have a base line to go by. It is that serious.
Players exercise all the time to make themselves bigger and stronger but you can't do anything for the brain and the head.
Oh it will be missed though. The oohs and aahs that a hard hitting play would bring from the lips. And we would wonder in amazement how the players would manage to get up and walk away from it all. Come to think of it, we wondered about ourselves some times when we played. And now we know. Players die too young, or crippled for life,
And sadly, some even taking their own lives. Many have resorted to heavy drug use as a coping mechanism just to get through the day. Lawrence Taylor of the New York Giants used cocaine during the game while playing. The equivalent of using a whip on a horse to run faster during a race. One watches in amazement the artistry and the unbelievable plays seemingly without thinking that happen in every game one watches. Awestruck!
Injuries are part of any game. Even golf, a non-contact sport, players blow out knees and backs, So no one is immune. Injuries are part of life. But in life head trauma is, thankfully, a rare thing.
Yes, I will miss it. It has been part of the culture and my life seemingly forever as with all sports that I grew up with. Change is inevitable.
and now it is time to suit up for a full contact cup of coffee!
ray
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