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Thread: 2019 College Football

  1. #1

    2019 College Football

    The 2019 college football season is underway tonight with Florida beating Miami 24-20. What team are you pulling for and who's going to win the national championship?

    I'm pulling for Nebraska and think Clemson repeats as champions.

  2. #2
    Quote Originally Posted by 36trap View Post
    What team are you pulling for ...?
    Whoever's playing Ohio State.
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  3. #3
    Site Supporter DocGKR's Avatar
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    How is a sport known to cause brain damage compatible with the mission of higher education?
    Facts matter...Feelings Can Lie

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    Site Supporter Hambo's Avatar
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    The Hawkeyes, and

    Quote Originally Posted by Drang View Post
    Whoever's playing Ohio State.
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    Quote Originally Posted by DocGKR View Post
    How is a sport known to cause brain damage compatible with the mission of higher education?
    It’s not, of course, and we all know that, but the schools, the students, and the fans won’t give it up. At the college and pro levels, and probably even in many high schools, it is a huge revenue issue. So how do we make it safer for the players? Is that possible while still maintaining fan and player interest? They talk about the “targeting” rule making college football safer, but I don’t know that it actually helps. I don’t think that you can tell what a player’s intent before contact was, only what the result is, so while that may serve to make players more cautious about certain types of contact, it doesn’t and probably can’t prevent it.

    Rule and equipment changes probably can’t keep concussion events from happening to those guys. When groups of 200-300+# guys repeatedly and deliberately slam into each other during practices and games for years on end, injuries are going to happen. Brains are going to bounce around in skulls, and TBIs are going to happen.

    What does the game do for high schoolers? If we want to deep dive this, what does it do for the 6th graders who just got their first football uniforms last week?

    Football, as I see it from the perspective of a K12 educator, isn’t about the game, and isn’t about winning and losing specifically. For many of the players I saw wearing football and cheer and band uniforms on Friday storming our halls in what used to be called a pep rally, it was about unifying them and through them and their efforts, unifying the school, about giving the participants a place to belong and everyone feeling a closer bond to the school, and a sense of purpose and pride. We can certainly do that without football for many of them - most of the band kids will still play in band, but the ones who only do it to march and do field shows might not show up if there aren’t football games to perform at even though they have their own competition season; the cheer squad will have other sports to perform for and their own competition season to show up for; the rest of the school will probably cheer for other sports - but fewer will probably show up for games. But if we change football - and I think we will have to in the long run so that the young players aren’t turned into brain damaged adults, the vast majority of whom will never put on even a college uniform, let alone a pro team uniform - if we actually do it, we may lose some kids who only show up at school for it. Some of what we will have to replace for some kids is that sense of connection and belonging at school, like it matters for them and they can contribute and gain from school.

    Some of the HS kids playing football are athletes who will show up for whatever version of it we give them, or for whatever replaces it, or for any other sport during the year, but some only play football and won’t have the same kinds of reasons to show up and some won’t show up at all if it goes away, and there will be a number of them who won’t come to school without it. Some aren’t really athletes, they are just doing it to belong or to have friends. Those are the ones we need to make sure aren’t lost in the transition whenever schools are forced to change the addiction to football and it’s money.

    I worry more about HS cheerleading injuries than football, though. Odds I glean from studies say that every girl you see thrown in the air or on the top of a stack of squad mates probably has one or more potentially crippling injuries every season, and some of their collisions put kids in the hospital or worse every year. There are more injuries, more crippling injuries, and more fatalities every year from cheer than all other HS sports combined. Why? There are multiple potential reasons: all collisions are accidents, so no one is prepared or set to take an impact, flying girls are always falling at some point and falling is one of the most dangerous vectors for serious injury, and none of the cheer squad members wear helmets, braces, pads, or any other protective gear. They just use their bodies to protect each other when they stunt, so the stunt girls and their bases and throwers and catchers are all at risk for an injury.

    What is life without some risk? I don’t know the answer to any of these problems, but: neither of my kids played football or did cheer. Neither of them really wanted to, but I would not have given permission for them to do it if they had wanted to. I would not have been moved by tears or anger. Sometimes, a parent has to pay the price and pay down the law, and I would have done it. Other parents, obviously, feel differently.
    Last edited by Duelist; 08-25-2019 at 06:41 AM.

  6. #6
    Site Supporter miller_man's Avatar
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    UGA fan here, GO DAWGS!

    Should be a top contender. Right now I'm still happy with being the SEC east powerhouse and making the SEC championship repeatedly.
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  7. #7
    Hokey / Ancient JAD's Avatar
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    Hawkeyes, and whoever’s playing Michigan or the Buckeyes. We need to find someone who can catch this year; as usual, the AP is overly optimistic putting them at 20.

    I never bet against Alabama, though it always makes me happy when the Sooners do well and if they can figure out defense they have a shot.
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    Quote Originally Posted by JAD View Post
    Hawkeyes, ... We need to find someone who can catch this year
    You mean unlike last year where Iowa produced two, count 'em, two, tight end's drafted in the first round of the NFL draft.

    For all you haters, Go Buckeyes!

  9. #9
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    Quote Originally Posted by DocGKR View Post
    How is a sport known to cause brain damage compatible with the mission of higher education?
    I always found it interesting the Air Force Academy has boxing as an intramural sport.

    https://www.academyadmissions.com/th...ral-athletics/

  10. #10
    Quote Originally Posted by DocGKR View Post
    How is a sport known to cause brain damage compatible with the mission of higher education?
    With all due respect Doc, what exactly is the mission of higher education these days?

    Football is compatible with higher education because 90,000 people won't show up for a physics lecture. Top football schools rake in big money and generate exposure that benefits the academic side of the house. Several university presidents seem to think success on the football field impacts university growth. Last but not least, football is a voluntary sport and participation is not required for those who seek higher education.

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