South Jersey Football Coaches Taking Steps to Prevent Concussions

With all the controversy and lawsuits surrounding the issue of concussions currently being filed against the NFL and the NCAA, high school football coaches in southern New Jersey are taking more precautions to protect their players against the injury.

Coaches at Shawnee and Cherokee don’t permit tackling to the ground during practice, and it’s possible schools may have to adopt the approach some colleges have taken of only having in-season contact during practice twice a week, the Courier Post reports.

In 2010, Gov. Chris Christie signed legislation that requires high school coaches to remove players from athletic events the moment they show any sign of concussions.

Some high schools have been using the imPACT concussion test system to monitor players since 2009.

Eastern Regional High School now uses that system in all sports, according to the report.

It’s all part of a safety movement on the part of all involved, including coaches who recognize concussions are more serious than they believed when they were playing sports.

Football is the sport with the most concussions nationally, with about 55,007 reported cases, according to the report.

The high school football season in New Jersey kicks off this weekend.

For more, visit courierpostonline.com.