I think that hypothetically there would be a way to play it with rigorous safety standards, and probably some changed rules, while maintaining a level of contact.
Last I heard studies were starting to show that even the relatively static line contact, not even high speed tackling or the like, was causing measurable brain damage just because it’s a lot of repeated hits and a lot of force.
And of course the effect is much worse on teens because the damage actively fucks up their neurological development in ways that cause impulse control problems, increased aggression, etc similar to lead poisoning. Kind of puts into context all the stereotypes about former high school football players, if it’s just been generation after generation of “for at least a sizeable chunk of them this is as bad as lead poisoning” brain damage.
Yup, repeated ‘sub-concussive’ hits are shown to be dangerous and a possible contributor to CTE. In Rugby they’ve tried to mitigate that with rules on hours of contact in training per week, among other new safety systems. The problem is in the meantime you’ve got to potentially sacrifice a few generations to see the data, especially since CTE often presents in later life.
The other complicating factor is that players are all so much bigger and faster these days, due to over-professionalisation and elite sport science, so safety that might’ve been applicable to guys in the 90’s might not even be effective now.
Yeah. If you think of the actual collision zone too - the front of the skull. The frontal lobe regulates a lot of impulsivity and aggression. That said though, I think it’s more cultural than biological in teen behaviour. The macho and drinking culture of the sports combines very badly.
Last I heard studies were starting to show that even the relatively static line contact, not even high speed tackling or the like, was causing measurable brain damage just because it’s a lot of repeated hits and a lot of force.
And of course the effect is much worse on teens because the damage actively fucks up their neurological development in ways that cause impulse control problems, increased aggression, etc similar to lead poisoning. Kind of puts into context all the stereotypes about former high school football players, if it’s just been generation after generation of “for at least a sizeable chunk of them this is as bad as lead poisoning” brain damage.
Yup, repeated ‘sub-concussive’ hits are shown to be dangerous and a possible contributor to CTE. In Rugby they’ve tried to mitigate that with rules on hours of contact in training per week, among other new safety systems. The problem is in the meantime you’ve got to potentially sacrifice a few generations to see the data, especially since CTE often presents in later life. The other complicating factor is that players are all so much bigger and faster these days, due to over-professionalisation and elite sport science, so safety that might’ve been applicable to guys in the 90’s might not even be effective now.
Yeah. If you think of the actual collision zone too - the front of the skull. The frontal lobe regulates a lot of impulsivity and aggression. That said though, I think it’s more cultural than biological in teen behaviour. The macho and drinking culture of the sports combines very badly.