Concussions And Its Effect on Youth Football Across Oregon

A decline in football participation seems to be affecting America altogether. In an article written by Cristin Severance and John Tierney from KGW News, participation in youth football has seen a decline across Oregon, with concussions being the main concern amongst parents. The article mentions that Casey Graver, a Lake Oswego High School junior, had to quit the sport altogether because of two concussions suffered in middle school. Doctors essentially told him that a third head injury would’ve prevented him from playing any sports. As an aspiring sportscaster, Grayer serves as the school’s commentator for their football games. While Grayer loves what he does, Severance and Tierney mention that he would still rather be on the field instead of in the booth. ““If I was able to compete with the varsity guys and compete at a high level, then yeah,” he said. Casey is one of thousands of kids in Oregon leaving the sport. “According to numbers KGW obtained through the Oregon School Activities Association, 23 percent fewer kids are playing high school football compared to 10 years ago. Records show 11,891 kids are playing high school football this year, down from the 15,009 who played in the 2008-2009 school year, say Severance and Tierney.” Lake Oswego High School head football coach Steve Coury says the numbers are concerning, and believes “the link between concussions and chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE, have led to parents keeping their kids from ever starting the game.” Coury also mentions that adjustments have already been made as a result. “You’ve got to have 25 kids to have a freshman team. Two years ago, we had 14 kids, so we didn’t have a freshman team, so we’ve moved those kids up,” he said. “So, we’ve already done it, we’ve adjusted. We’ve already felt it.” Doctor and sports medicine director at the Oregon Health and Science University concussion program Jim Chesnutt sees a trend with parents removing their kids from football at a younger age. He says that “research shows it takes longer for children to recover from concussions than adults, about four to six weeks, and that three of more concussions in young people increases the risk of reoccurring or more serious concussions.” Even with these concerns, Chesnutt believes the game is moving in the right direction and doesn’t discourage kids and parents from football. Changes from the OSAA have been made to make the game safer for kids. Some of them include: starting third and fourth graders in flag football instead of tackle football and young players moving to rookie tackle in fifth and sixth grades. Coury believes, however, that not every parent seems to be on board with the changes. “Change is tough. So, you have people down there, dads, fighting that stuff, too. In order to save this sport, we’re going to have to make changes,” said Coury. With dilemmas like these occurring in youth football across America, time will tell whether changes like these can make enough of an impact.