Head in the game: Concussion awareness at forefront as fall sports commence
WMU quarterback Tim Hiller, shown being pressured by Michigan’s Brandon Graham during a 2009 game, did not suffer a concussion in his Broncos career. He had a concussion as a high school player in Orrville, Ohio.
KALAMAZOO — Pressure is on Todd Rice as Marcellus’ varsity football coach and it’s not nearly as simple as wins and losses.
It’s more complicated than deciding to go for it on fourth-and-1 from his own 40-yard line or punting it.
“I think probably almost every ball game a kid gets hurt and you’re trying to evaluate how serious of an injury it is. That’s the hardest thing as a coach (to determine injury severity). We’re not medical staff,” said Rice, who recalled a particular contest in which one of his best players “got his bell rung” and no trainers or emergency medical technicians were present.
“The last place I wanted (the player) was on the bench. But on the flip side, when I go out there, he really doesn’t know where he’s at. He’s telling me it’s really bright, and really it’s an evening game and the lights are on, (but) he’s kind of laying there, looking.”
Marcellus football coach Todd Rice
Roster numbers and victories have been low for Marcellus in recent seasons, but Rice said he tends to err on the side of caution. Don’t expect the veteran coach to change his philosophy, either. He was engaged in the “Concussions in High School Sports” program hosted by Safe Kids Kalamazoo County last week at Bronson Athletic Club.
The educational event featured speakers Tim Hiller (former Western Michigan University quarterback and current Gull Lake football coach), Robert Baker (WMU team physician), Kyle Blecha (WMU head football trainer), Dennis Corbin (WMU associate athletic director and athletic trainer) and Jeffery Willson (director of high school athletic training programs).
They primarily discussed the hottest topic, concussions, which was brought into light during the NFL’s crackdown on violent hits. The NFL and NCAA are currently pushing for youth sports concussion legislation. Baker estimated that more than half of the nation’s states have concussion laws, and that “we’ve got one going in Michigan that will probably be enacted.”
Green Bay Packers receiver Greg Jennings recently endorsed Safe Kids Kalamazoo County’s sports safety movement, specifically the concussion awareness efforts.
Baker, physician with Bronson Orthopedics and Sports Medicine, noted three buzzwords for coaches, athletes and parents as fall sports seasons kick into high gear: Concussion, heat, heart.
Dr. Robert Baker
“For years, it’s been in the coaches’ literature, it’s been in the athletic associations, things like that, ‘A kid with a head injury ought to be pulled out and examined,’ but it was kind of brushed over; nobody took it seriously,” Baker said. “Now I think it’s being brought out in the open to be talked about and discussed. It’s still somewhat of a moving target. We’re trying to design some tests that can identify a kid, ‘This kid definitely has a concussion,’ because we know kids are going to hide it.”
The Michigan High School Athletic Association’s protocol falls in line with that of the national federation sports rules books for the 2011-12 school year. In summation, an athlete exhibiting signs, symptoms or behaviors consistent with a concussion (loss of consciousness, headache, dizziness, confusion or balance problems) shall be immediately removed from that contest and not return to competition until cleared by an appropriate health care professional.
The strengthening of rules reflects an increasing focus on safety since many concussions do not involve a loss of consciousness.
Portage Central AD Jim Murray
Portage Central athletic director Jim Murray, longtime coach of the Mustangs’ hockey team, said his school abides by the MHSAA protocol.
“The ‘W’ (win) at that point in time is very important, but a year from now, two years from now, you won’t even remember if you won or lost that game. But if some kid is permanently injured, you’re never going to forget that,” said Murray, who noted the autopsy performed on former Detroit Red Wings enforcer Bob Probert’s brain and “all kinds of bad stuff” doctors discovered.
On any given night, a coach faces not only the opponent but competing interests. It could be an overzealous parent applying pressure or an athlete simply living in the moment and not thinking about the long-term consequences.
“I’m amazed as I run Rocket camps and different things with these younger kids that are fifth-, sixth-, seventh-, eighth-graders. I’m amazed what their parents want them to play through,” said Hiller, who suffered a concussion once in his career. At Orrville (Ohio) High School, he was hit (not in the head) and experienced a “whiplash” effect. “I’m amazed at what they push their kids to do. I hope I’m not that kind of parent some day. I hate to say that, but the reality is that some of our kids are being pushed too hard to do too much.”
In spite of poor judgment by adults, Rice said you still cannot leave the decision up to the young athletes.
“I don’t know if it’s hard for a coach to say, ‘OK, I don’t want this kid to be paralyzed for life or have a knee injury for life,’” he said. “It’s harder when you know that you have a parent that wants to see that kid play and you’ve got a kid who wants to play. Of course you want to be competitive, but you’re saying, ‘I know that parent wants him to be play, but is that parent even being objective?’ and you know the kid’s not going to be objective.
“I think a lot of times that’s the hardest juggling act is to have parents that are standing there … and I’m sure there’s coaches that are the other way, ‘Hey, I need that kid no matter what because I need to win,’” he said. “I don’t tend to fall that way because I’ve been in a head-on car accident with a drunk driver and I was eight months in recovery. I don’t ever want to see a kid go through that.”
Baker said the tide is turning in terms of awareness. With communication being what it is today, word is getting out, players and coaches are taking seriously and they’re seeking examination. They’re not as apt to hide injuries, especially those involving the brain.
“The message should be that sports, for the most part, are safe,” Baker said. “We want to try to prevent unnecessary (deaths and injuries) if it’s due to misinformation, not knowing about concussions, not knowing about screening for heart conditions, not practicing safe things in terms of dehydration. We try to make sports safer. I think they’re already pretty safe. If you throw the kids keys to the car at 11 o’clock at night, that’s a much riskier thing than sports. Sports are safe. We just want to get the message out.”
Contact Scott DeCamp at sdecamp@kalamazoogazette.com or 269-388-8518.
SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS OF SPORTS-RELATED CONCUSSION
Observed by others
• Athlete appears dazed or stunned
• Confusion about assignment, plays, etc.
• Forgets plays
• Unsure about game, score, opponent
• Moves clumsily (altered coordination)
• Balance problems
• Personality change
• Responds slowly to questions
• Forgets events prior to hit
• Forgets events after the hit
• Loss of consciousness for any duration
Reported by athletes
• Headache
• Fatigue
• Nausea or vomiting
• Double vision, blurry vision
• Sensitive to light or noise
• Feels slugging
• Feels “foggy”
• Problems concentrating
• Problems remembering
Notes
• An athlete does not have to lose consciousness to have a concussion.
• Concussions can occur from blows to the body as well as to the head (e.g. whiplash).