Concussion

By Malik Stewart

The main injuries that many players suffer from are concussions, coming from hard hits and tackles. The movie called, Concussion, produced by Columbia Pictures is set to release on Christmas Day, 2015 portraying Bennet Omalu, played by film star Will Smith.

Concussion is an upcoming biographical sports thriller drama about the forensic pathologist Bennet Omalu, who fought against efforts by the National Football League to suppress his research on the brain damage suffered by professional football players. The film will also depict the story Dr. Bennet Omalu’s race-against-time to publicize Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE) in American football players and games. Also, it shows how the National Football League (NFL) attempt to deny the problem and criticizes the findings .

In today’s society, sports is becoming more and more violent every day in terms of the safety and health issues that a lot of these players suffer from playing these physical contact sports. More specifically, football, which is easily the most popular and dangerous sport of all is where most of these horrific career ending injuries mostly occur.

The idea of this NFL concussion film was inspired by the studies about former NFL stars Junior Seau and Dave Duerson, who both committed suicide after suffering from CTE. Junior Seau was a professional football player, who played linebacker for the Miami Dolphins, New England Patriots, and the San Diego Chargers. Once he retired in 2010, he later committed suicide by shooting himself in the chest on May 2, 2012. Later in August 2012, Seau’s autopsy revealed that he had no illegal drugs in his system, but there was an assumption of suffered brain damage, due to CTE. On January 10, 2013, the National Institutes of Health confirmed that Junior Seau suffered from CTE, because of repetitive head injuries.

Issues that exist within the game of football, whether it deals with college sports or the NFL, are concussions. Concussions cannot only affect athletes negatively in the young stages of their lives, but also in the later years of life. Concussions are now thought of as significant neuropsychological events with very real long-term consequences (Zillmer & Spiers, 2001).

Contact sports like rugby, soccer, football, and lacrosse are the main sports that have had a significant increase in concussions for both male and females. The Standardized Assessment of Concussion (SAC) was developed in accordance with guidelines set forth by the AAN and in response to the recommendation for the development of a standardized tool with which concussions could be immediately evaluated on the sidelines. Benefits include ease and brevity of administration and scoring and alternate forms for follow-up assessment and tracking recovery (McKeever, C. K., & Schatz, PC 2003).

Validation studies reveal the SAC to be accurate in classifying concussed athletes from non-concussed controls with 95% sensitivity and 76% specificity. Baseline and serial post-concussion assessment are used to document pre- concussion and post-concussion performance. They tend to be more detailed and include more complex tasks than either sideline assessments or other screening measures that may take only 5 to 10 minutes to complete. Baseline assessments provide a vital experimental control for individual differences among players (McKeever, C. K., & Schatz, PC 2003).

Bennet Omalu was the first forensic pathologist to publish findings of CTE in American Football Players. He graduated from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka with a Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery in June 1990. He completed a pathology residency in 1999 through the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Columbia University at Harlem Hospital Center and subsequently worked at the University of Pittsburgh in forensic pathology and neuropathology.

Omalu also received a Masters in Public Health & Epidemiology from University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health in 2004 and a Masters in Business Administration from Tepper School of Business, Carnegie Mellon University in 2008. He is currently chief medical examiner of San Joaquin County, California and is a professor in the UC Davis Department of Medical Pathology and Laboratory Medicine.

Concussion is going to be another huge hit and success because of how well this movie is put together and what it portrays and aims to accomplish, along with the outstanding cast members that are featured and starred in this movie. Will Smith and other actors will use their acting talents to make this true story, come back to life through drama, real life events and events that occurred at that time.

Will Smith is one of the most popular, richest, profitable and well-known African- American male actors of this era. Starting with the legendary comedic show, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, Will Smith has shown versatility in his acting starring in comedy, action, drama, and non-fiction movies throughout his illustrious career.

The movie is important for other athletes participating in all sports, because players can suffer from concussions in any sport at any time, whether it is in practice or a game. Atheletes should be aware and understand how these findings and studies can help them be cautious about how they perform and carry themselves on and off the field in case they suffer from a concussion, God forbid. I will definitely be going to see this movie when it comes out.

Life After Football

By: Gregory Outlaw

Is there a life for NFL players after football?

Granted the fact that the benefits of playing professional football are far greater than most people’s 9-5. With all of the exposure, traveling, and most importantly the money is all one could dream and hope for; yet, with all of the good, there is always some bad.

Are all of the perks of playing professional football worth the consequences after playing professional football? Are you ready to go back to being a “regular guy,” losing out on millions of dollars, and most notable the long-term injuries? Then, after you realize all of these things are happening, are you ready to go into depression, which is a dark road.

The proof is in the pudding!

Take former New York Giant and NFL super star Tiki Barber for example. Barber learned first hand how debilitating that process can be when your post-football plans fail. Players who’ve lived a dream life on the field suddenly discover how nightmarish the world can be away from it. Barber stated, “For the first four years of my retirement I was in depression… in fact, I get depressed even at times now.”

Likewise, take Junior Seau, who really validates the point, that life after football is tough. Seau was a hard-hitting linebacker who was forced into early retirement due to all of the pounding his body took and the multiple of injuries such as dementia and Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE). His life after football became tragic quick.

Most believe  (his psychiatrist mainly) the pain and depression that he was dealing with lead to him shooting himself at the age of 43. Then the list goes on. Big time former NFL names such: as Terrell Owens, Warren Sapp, Michael Bennett, William Joseph and more. Mr. Owens, has already had blown the $80 million he earned during his career and has filed for bankruptcy and has had to sell most of his belongings. Likewise, Warren Sapp recently filed for bankruptcy.  Then, former first-round picks Michael Bennett and William Joseph currently face federal charges of tax fraud and identity theft.

Furthermore, a 2009 Sports Illustrated study said that 78 percent of NFL retirees have “gone bankrupt or are under financial stress because of joblessness or divorce” within two years of their careers ending. “You’re talking about an identity crisis,” said NFL vice president of player engagement and former Pro Bowl cornerback Troy Vincent.

“Every athlete has to face the same question when they’re done: ‘Who am I?’ The most damaging part of such financial ineptitude is the ripple effect it creates. Money woes strain marriages and leave many players scrambling for cash to pay for child support, back taxes or homes and cars purchased for loved ones. Those who can’t find work in broadcasting or coaching can quickly panic when the money evaporates.

The players who tend to have an easier time dealing with such realities usually either had careers that started without great acclaim or didn’t play long in the league.

My Personal Opinion

I could imagine life after NFL being rough for most players. The two main reasons is because of the permanent injuries and the lack of funds that the players are not use to. More than 50% of former NFL players go into depression mode and this depression mode happens to former players on all levels.

Though he may not be a NFL player, take former star running back Keith Brown for instance. Some could argue that he had a chance of making it to the NFL, but now he is just a “regular guy” as he stated. Mr. Brown stated that he does not know life without football and is faced with depression even till this day.

Likewise, for most of these players, football is all that they know, literally. They were only in school because of their athletic ability and in most cases pushed through school because of their social status, which is detrimental to most players in the long run.

Most don’t have the smarts to manage their money  (and invest which you should learn in school) while they are rich, or rather have the smarts (a degree) to fall back on after football to get a job and make ends meet. Then, I don’t think players know when it is time to hang up the cleats. Most love the game so much that they play to their “wheels fall off” causing all types of injuries (most times head injuries) that money cannot fix. There should be a limit for players to play, especially those who are injured prone in my opinion. What do you think?

 

Women in Sports #LadiesFirst

 photo credit: USAToday

by Malik Stewart

Why is it so hard for people to accept women into the sports world, so they can have the opportunity to compete, progress, and win in a sport that they love? Why is it so awkward to see a woman coach a sport like basketball or football, let alone play in them?

Every woman has the right to learn, coach, participate, and compete in whatever sport they like regardless of age, religion, race, or sexuality. Thanks to Title IX, women are allowed to learn, coach, participate, and compete in sports without being denied, discriminated, or cast out due to their sexuality. Title IX states that, “No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any educational program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance” (Women’s Sports Foundation, 2011).

Unfortunately, the University of Minnesota did not get the memo, on how to treat their female athletes and coaches. Shannon Miller, Jen Banford and Annette Wiles, three former women’s head coaches with the University of Minnesota-Duluth are suing the school, for alleging discrimination under Title VII and Title IX and claiming they were fired because they are females and gay. Also, two of the plaintiffs are suing the Board of Regents, because they claim they were also fired because they are Canadian, and two of them claim age discrimination because they are older than 40.

Shannon Miller, who is 51 years old, was the head coach of women’s hockey until December 9, 2014, when the university informed her that they would not renew her contract. The crazy thing about that situation is that she was already paid 30% less than the men’s hockey coach was and was never asked to take a pay cut.

Jen Banford, who is 34 years old, was head coach of the women’s softball team, until she was let go two days earlier than Shannon Miller. Annette Wiles, who is 46 years old, was head coach of the women’s basketball team until she was forced to resign on June 1, 2015. According to Wiles, it was due to “the hostile and discriminatory environment created by the university” (Gray & Stewart, 2015).

It is ridiculous that we as a nation are so quick to see somebody as evil or different, simply because of where they are from, what they look like, and what their preferences are. At the end of the day, we are all human beings trying to maneuver our way through this corrupt society and find some sort of success, happiness and stability in their lives. For some people, that means trying or experiencing things that other people may not approve, feel comfortable, or agree with.

However, that does not mean that they should be cast out, belittled or criticized for their different interests, acts or beliefs. Even though, Title IX was made to protect and allow all females of different races, religions, sexuality to play sports without being discriminated or denied, University of Minnesota chose to abandon that law and mistreat these innocent, successful female coaches. As long as these coaches were winning, setting a good example for the girls on the team, treating all of them with respect and equality, none of these female coaches had any reason to be treated this way.

The University of Minnesota should be forced to hire the three coaches back, renew their contracts, pay a hefty fine, as well as paying the female coaches just as much as the male coaches, instead of dropping their pay by 30%. This situation could damage the reputation of University of Minnesota tremendously, because people will not only want to participate in sports related to the University, but others will not even want to apply, attend, or teach at the University, because of the possibility of being exposed to this egregious act.

I feel sorry for the females who play these different sports for this college because by them being exposed to this issue, could possibly damage the females mentally and make them scared or think that they are not worthy or good enough to play sports. If my daughter played sports for the University of Minnesota, but later kicked off the team because of her sexuality, race, or religion, I would immediately take her out of the school, and sue the University, for unfair mistreatment and the violation of Title IX.

There is enough hatred, evil and discrimination going on amongst men right now, and the last thing we need is women mistreated in the sport world. Title IX was specifically made to protect the rights of females when participating in sports, and keep them feeling welcome, safe and comfortable, while competing.

Women are one of the most important and beautiful beings on earth, and should be treated with respect and appreciation at all times, regardless of their sexuality or race. Since 1972, Title IX has been in full effect, it is not going anywhere anytime soon, and any university that chooses to act against the rule needs to be punished with no type of remorse. Justice for all, and equality for everybody.

San Francisco 49er’s trade Vernon Davis gets Traded

Photo credit: Sports World Report

By Gregory Outlaw

Who was once called “the savior” for the San Francisco 49er’s organization; Vernon Davis has been traded to the Denver Broncos. In the 2011–12 NFL playoffs, Davis caught the game winning touchdown pass from Alex Smith against the New Orleans Saints, now referred to as “The Catch III,” in respects to “The Catch” by Dwight Clark in 1982, and “The Catch II” by Terrell Owens in 1999. Davis was selected 6th overall in the 1st round of the 2006 NFL Draft by the San Francisco 49er’s. Davis joined Kellen Winslow Jr. as the fourth highest tight end ever drafted

History of the 49er’s

The San Francisco 49er’s were the first major league professional sports franchise based in San Francisco, and one of the first professional sports teams based on the West Coast of the United States.[citation needed] The team also became the first “big four”-sports (i.e., baseball, football, basketball, or ice hockey) franchise to play in the Western United States. Team has a successful background.

The Franchise has several championships, while housing many hall-of-fame players. Players like “Joe Montana” and “Steve Young,” who are arguably the best two quarterbacks to play football, are SanFran alumni’s Where did the team get its unique team name and logo? The original 49ers logo was a mustached 49er gold miner from the 1849 California Gold Rush, dressed in plaid pants and a red shirt, jumping in midair with his hat falling off, and firing pistols in each hand: one nearly shooting his foot, and the other pistol forming the word “Forty-Niners” from its smoke. An alternate logo with a shield-shaped crest formed from the number “49”, with a football in the upper right quadrant and “SF” in the lower left quadrant was created in 1965 and used for marketing purposes until 1972. From 1962, the 49ers’ logo has been the iconic “SF” within the center of a red oval; throughout the years the logo has had minor modifications, such as a black outlining on the intertwined “SF” that was added in 1989 and a gold trimming inside the oval that was added in

Why is this Trade so important?

Although the San Francisco franchise has been overall success (even from the time the organization first started), the team went through turmoil during the early 2000’s. The 49ers started to have back-to-back losing seasons and had no answers; the team just didn’t mesh. Every year the team would trade to acquire key players and tried to use the draft, but nothing helped. Then, there was the 2006 draft and this kid from Maryland is one of the top players in the draft. Typically, tight ends- a NFL position isn’t drafted in the first round, yet alone in the top 10.

However, Vernon was not only the top tight end of the draft, but he was considered to be the one of the top 3 players in the entire draft, which was the reason he was selected by the 49ers. From that point on, Vernon became the cities “Golden Boy” and living up to the fans and the team’s expectations. He was even labeled “the savior” by the owner of the team. Not to mention, the owner even stated “Vernon is our franchise player” at a particular time. In other words, this means he expected Davis to retire a 49er.

 

Student-Athlete vs. Athlete-Student

Photo credit:Learn What’s Possible

by Malik Stewart

It is every athlete’s dream to be able to play a sport that they love, and be able to attend any college of their choice to play that sport. However, paying college athletes should not be one of the benefits that they receive throughout their college career. Last time I checked this was college, so it should be about being a student-athlete, instead of an athlete student.

Paying college athletes is an issue within college sports that has been around for awhile, because there are so many athletes experiencing this type of illegal activity. No matter how good or superior a player is at that sport compared to the rest of his team, does not mean that he or she should be paid for playing that sport.

NCAA President Mark Emmert says, “One thing that sets the fundamental tone is there are very few members,  and virtually no university president that thinks it’s a good idea to convert student-athletes into paid employees. Literally into professionals”(Armour,2013).

I totally agree with this statement, because you are turning a full-time college student-athlete into a full-time employee, by paying that athlete to play a sport. It takes away the true meaning of what sports are all about, which is teamwork and integrity. I say teamwork because most sports require a team to be assembled, so they must work together to gain understanding and trust between one another, so they can learn, compete, progress and win as a team.

Sports are all about integrity because it all comes down to moral principles and what you stand for as an organization, that will determine how the team will carry themselves on and off the field. Integrity instills discipline, maturity, and good sportsmanship, which are key characteristics needed to play and win the game fairly.

By not paying college athletes, shows them that they are all a team and nobody will be treated differently than anyone else because of their ability to do more on the field or court. It gives a sense of equality, fairness, and understanding for the team as a whole.

According to President Obama, “paying athletes would lead to bidding wars that would ruin the sense of college sports (Starchan, 2015)”. This is so true, because instead of enjoying the game, and watching the players play fair and hard as a team, they will be focused on betting on teams and players trying to make money off of them, which takes the fun and excitement out of the sport. I love to see the players performing to the best of their ability simply because they love to play the game, instead of doing it for the love of money.

If college players were to get paid to play sports, then it would give the athlete the wrong state of mind and will begin to think that sports are more important than getting an education. Having that mindset in college is very dangerous because that athlete may stop going to class, studying, and doing homework. Instead, he will put all of his focus on improving in the sport he or she loves to play. What makes it even worse, is that some players may not even care about winning anymore, as long as they are paid because that is all they want.

In some cases, paying college athletes would leave the players more vulnerable to getting into trouble off the field, because some of them will spend their money on irrelevant and meaningless things, like women, drugs, and alcohol, which is dangerous for any athlete, because some of them cannot handle the consequences that come with these issues. This issue has existed and unfortunately affected college players throughout history negatively.

Johnny Manziel and Todd Gurley are examples of players that were punished for accepting money while playing college sports. Johnny Manziel played quarterback for the Texas A&M Aggies in the 2013-2014 NCAA Football season as a junior. During the season, an East Coast autograph broker accused Johnny Manziel of being paid 7,500 dollars for signing approximately 300 mini full-sized helmets on January 11-12.

In the NCAA, being accused of this shameful act was considered accepting money for promoting or advertising the commercial sale of a product or service. The punishment for this act was being ineligible for the rest of the season. Unfortunately, there was not enough conclusive evidence to find Johnny Manziel guilty. As a result, Johnny Manziel only had to sit out for the first half of their next game for his punishment. He now plays quarterback in the NFL for the Cleveland Browns.

Todd Gurley was a junior running back for the Georgia Bulldogs. He was accused of receiving 3000 dollars for signing autographed souvenirs over the past two years. Unlike Johnny Manziel, the NCAA was able to find enough conclusive evidence on Todd Gurley, to suspend him for the next four games. As another punishment, Gurley had to repay a portion of the money he received to a charity of his choice and complete 40 hours of community service. Once Todd Gurley returned from his suspension, he, unfortunately, suffered a severe leg injury against Auburn. In the end, Todd Gurley was not able to return to the game, and later diagnosed with a torn ACL, causing him to miss the rest of the 2013-2014 NCAA Football season. He currently plays running back in the NFL for the St. Louis Rams.

Another popular but unfortunate victim of this issue was Reggie Bush from the USC Trojans. He was the 2005 Heisman Trophy Winner, but because the NCAA found out that his parents were paid hundreds of thousands of dollars in illegal benefits, he had to give up his Heisman Trophy and the Trojans team got 30 scholarships taken away and given a two-year postseason ban. He currently plays running back in the NFL for the San Francisco 49ers.

Players like the Fab 5 were unfortunate victims in this issue because some of the players received $616,000 from booster, Ed Martin. They were young freshman playing basketball for the Michigan Wolverines, who appeared to back-to-back national championships even though they lost both times. In the end, their head coach Steve Fisher was fired, the Wolverines were placed on a two-year probation period, and the program was forced to surrender its 1992 and 1993 Final Fours.

Despite the fact, there are many issues that college sports continue to face, athletes are still able to go to college, learn, meet new people, play sports and graduate. However, no matter how entertaining college sports may be, there still needs to be some sort of stability in the way these colleges treat their athletes. Paying the athletes should not be included in the athletic curriculum, because college is all about becoming a student-athlete, instead of an athlete student.

Cheat Gate Always Wins

By Nevin Potts

​Recently, Tom Brady won his appeal against the NFL. The NFL suspended Tom Brady for four games in the 2015 football season for his alleged role in the “Deflate Gate Scandal”. Tom Brady’s appeal was to overturn that suspension and the judge ruled in his favor. This is the most recent scandals in the NFL which seems to have a new scandal every day. But this is big because of the person involved which is Tom Brady. Tom Brady is the golden boy for the NFL. Punishing him could have done a lot more harm than good for the NFL and they certainly knew that. But what happens when a team with a history of cheating never gets punished? The Patriots organization has a history of cheating dating back to 2007 in this so called Belichick era. The New England Patriots cannot avoid punishment forever.

​In 2007, th Patriots were in the news daily for the “Spy Gate Scandal”. This scandal alleged that the Patriots filmed a game from a wrong location causing them to be able to study coaches hand signals. In reality, this is not illegal in the NFL, but they were taping from their sideline which is illegal. There are designated areas in stadiums where coaches are allowed to film games. Some teams allege that the Patriots personnel filmed there practices but no proof could be given. Filming from the sideline gives The Patriots the unfair advantage of being able to study teams hand signals and change plays accordingly. As punishment, the Patriots were fined 250,000$ and Bill Belichick himself was fined 500,000$. They also got docked their original 1st round draft pick in the 2008 draft. 500,000 dollars is chump change to Bill Belichick. That year The Patriots went 16-0. Obviously the filming tipped in their favor. Who knows how long they were doing it. This was the only time they were caught. Having an undefeated season seems to serve truth to my testaments. Also recently, other teams have started accusing The Patriots of using this tactic on them. Former players from the Philadelphia Eagles feel as if Spygate caused them a Super Bowl in 2005 against The Patriots. There is no telling how long the Patriots could have been doing this to many teams. If you remember correctly, the first Patriots run of Super Bowls were a three peat. Winning three Super Bowls consecutively is a hard feat on its own. Perhaps the Patriots had a little help? We may never know, or will we?

​Since 2007, the Patriots have been involved in performance enhancing drugs (PED’s) scandals four different times. PED use is something that happens in all sports. That is just a fact. But what happens when it’s repeatedly used by the same teams? Four different times The Patriots have been accused of players using PED’s. Each punishment resulted in the players being suspended four games which is reasonable. But maybe Bill Belichick should know what his players are doing.

​The Patriots were yet again in another scandal called “Deflate Gate”. The scandal alleged The New England Patriots were under inflating footballs. In the NFL, all footballs are supposed to be inflated to a certain 12.5 PSI. The Patriots had a ball under the limit. But at the front of the scandal was Tom Brady. Did he know the balls were deflated? Did this give them an unfair advantage? That were some of the questions that the NFL was looking to answer. But once again, nothing could be proved. According to the Wells Report “Logistically, the greater change in pressure in the Patriots footballs can be explained by the fact that sufficient time may have passed between halftime testing of the two teams’ balls for the Colts balls to warm significantly, effectively inflating them.” This did not explain if Tom Brady knew the balls were inflated though. The NFL tried to gain clarity by reading through Tom Brady’s message log on his phone. Some messages were strategically erased though. Through phone records, the NFL could not gain any overwhelming evidence. This led to a judge overturning the NFL’s ruling of suspending Brady for the first four games of the regular season. Ok, let’s be serious. Personally, “Deflate gate” isn’t that me. You still have to play defense just like any other team. A little under inflated ball cannot change the outcome of a game. But this is repeating territory. We’ve been there before with this team. The favorite child of the NFL has treaded these waters before and got off with a Timeout when they deserved a spanking. Some say the harshness Roger Goodell imposed was a makeup call for all the other times his favorite son got off easy.

​The Patriots are one of the most revered sports team in recent memory. They are also one of the most winning teams. They are the face of the NFL and what it stands for. Their star quarterback is single handedly the face of the NFL. But are they exempt from severe punishment? No one should be exempt from strict punishment in the NFL. A team with a strategic history of cheating should get more than just a slap on the wrist. They are always involved in a cheating scandal much more than any team that comes to recent memory. It is always the same type of scandal also which is cheating. This has not slowed them down though. In the 2014 season, The Patriots went on to win the Super Bowl by beating the Seattle Seahawks in the final seconds of the game. With Tom Brady back behind the wheel this year after not missing any games seems to have them destined for another season of greatness. This just goes to show that all in all, cheating does indeed win.