He was a senior in high school, it was the first round of the Arizona state football playoffs, and it was the last game Charles Youvella would ever play. After catching a pass and receiving a blow to the back of his head, Youvella collapsed on the field. Two days later he was pronounced dead in a nearby hospital (azfamily.com). Tragedies such as this one are becoming all too common, especially in the United States, where student athletes are forced to their mental and physical limits in order to fulfill the massive demands placed upon them by their coaches, fans, and community. In Friday Night Lights by H.G. Bissinger, the stress of competing on a Texas high school football team is magnified. Many student-athletes see their grades slip, relationships struggle, and bodies take enormous physical toll, all to win football games.
Over the past ten years, twenty-five high school football players have died as a result of injuries sustained on the football field (deadspin.com). Some deaths are brain-related, others pulmonary, nevertheless steps need to be taken to extinguish these events. What are the reasons for these sudden deaths? Some of the culprits include: poor coaching, poor helmets, and overworking. But Bissinger illuminates a new culprit that may be behind all of these attacks, pressure. Many kids play football for the love of the game, others play for the glory or because their parents want them to. However, no matter the reason for athletes' involvement in the game of football, pressure is what causes these injuries. Student-athletes feel the need to succeed as a result of all the pressure and expectations put on themselves by parents, community, and most of all, themselves. When a player is out on the field with a heightened amount of adrenaline and testosterone, it is a recipe for disaster. They can easily injure themselves or others. In Friday Night Lights, Bissinger shows how serious the external pressure on football players can be. For example, one player was told by his father that if he fumbles the ball one more time he will be forced to sleep outside. As a juvenile athlete, nothing is scarier that disappointment, it is what motivates many athletes to practice so hard and push themselves to their limits. Many players don't want to be good for themselves, they want to be good so they can make their parents proud, and get all the girls, when in fact they may be hurting themselves.
So what can we do to help? Relax, it is just a game. No, in no way am I saying that we should stop playing football, that would be a crime. But there are ways that we as a country can enjoy the game while protecting the lives of the players. Too many bright young lives have been cut short because of a game.
I think your topic is both very interesting and very important. Too many people want to just brush off the damage being done to these people by saying that football is supposed to be a violent sport and these kids know what they signed up for. But what your talking about shows that a lot of the time these kids were pressured to perform and pressured to play football. While it is of course ultimately your choice, it might be hard to say no, and we should always try to protect them no matter what.
ReplyDeleteOne thing that stands out as I am reading is that you seem to just focus on the deaths of football players, when many more get paralyzed or permanent brain damage. Suicide is also a big problem for players that have played football al their lives. As I am sure you know, their have been tons of former NFL players who have killed themselves or worse (like the Kansas City player who killed himself and his family). Focusing on this could expand your view to not only high school football but to college and pro-football. It seems like you are going to focus mostly on the external pressures on football players and the problems they cause, but one thing that would be worthwhile to talk about is what kind of rule changes can be put in place to protect the players, because I think that is one very obvious way we can prevent injuries.
James reminds me about the brain damage that can cause violent behavior -- maybe not always murder, but domestic battery, bar fights, etc. You might look into these aspects. I also think, as we talked today, you should search for the different solutions people are suggesting. What should be done? What can be done?
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