Eric LeGrand's Injury Another Reminder of Football's Dangers

Eric LeGrand, a defensive tackle for the Rutgers University football team, was carted off the field and rushed to Hackensack Regional Medical Center on Saturday after incurring what appeared to be a serious neck injury while returning a kick during a game against Army; particularly worrisome is the fact that nearly twenty four hours later there has been no update on his condition. LeGrand lay motionless on the field for about seven minutes after being tackled while a stunned stadium stood silent.

The game continued, with Rutgers winning 23 to 20 in overtime, but as the hours have passed, the outcome of the game seems increasingly less important as football fans everywhere become aware of the apparent severity of LeGrand's condition.

Normally, Rutgers head coach Greg Schiano meets with reporters the day after his team plays, but as of Sunday afternoon, no press conference has been scheduled, further adding to the concern for LeGrand. Shciano reportedly visited the hospital immediately after the game, though it was not clear if he was allowed to visit LeGrand while there.

LeGrand's injury is the latest reminder of the deepening concern over the sport and the physical and mental toll it takes on its players. Football has become the most popular sport in the United States. There is little doubt that part of the appeal of the game is the physicality with which the game is played. The game has evolved through the years to the point where the speed and power of its players has made it into something that would have been unrecognizable to a fan from three or four generations ago.

But with that speed and power comes a level of risk that is increasingly coming under scrutiny. In recent years, the issue of dementia in retired of NFL players has received increased attention. Last year a study paid for by the NFL indicated that players between the ages of 30 and 49, young men all, had a risk of dementia that was 19 times the rate of the general population.

Other studies show that the average life expectancy for a former NFL player is an astonishingly low 55 years; in the general population men can expect to live to be 77 years old.

The problem that football seems to have is that the risks of serious injury, dementia and early deaths are rooted in a number of interrelated but separate factors. Paralysis could happen at any time even as the result of a routine and clean tackle. Dementia is the suspected result of repeated blows to the head. Early deaths are attributable to the inordinate weight that many player, particularly linemen, carry on them in order to play the game.

Most immediately, of course, the concern is over the welfare of condition of Rutgers football player Eric LeGrand; longer term, it will be interesting to see how society accepts the increasingly dangerous game that football has become.

Sources:

TampaBay.com
NJ.com
NYTimes.com