Go get the ball!

We’ve said those words countless times to our players, and watched from the sidelines as increasingly bigger, stronger and faster athletes make or break game-winning tackles.

Now it’s time for the three of us to go get the ball and tackle something ourselves: the issue of concussions.

At the collegiate level, we’re fortunate to be surrounded by excellent medical personnel who help make certain our athletes can receive the best medical care available. Athletic trainers and staff are able to recognize and treat concussions at a level almost unrecognizable from just a few years ago. We can ensure the immediate safety of players and minimize any long-term risk.

Concussions are most often associated with football, and rightly so. Our sport has the highest concussion rate among organized sports, but it’s not just college athletes or football players who are at risk. According to the Sports Concussion Institute, an estimated 10 percent of high school athletes in contact sports suffer a concussion each season. This includes soccer, lacrosse, hockey, wrestling, basketball, baseball, softball, volleyball and cheerleading. It’s an injury that directly affects nearly every athlete in Idaho, and something that deserves our immediate attention.

Fortunately, this issue is receiving more and more national recognition, and deservedly so. No other injury is as ill-defined as a concussion. It’s easy for the untrained eye to recognize cases that involve the loss of consciousness, but only recently have we become aware of the long-term effects of continued concussive injuries. No longer is it acceptable to simply say an athlete has “had your bell rung” or was “dinged” on a play. We should not assume that you can just shake off such an injury. Concussions are much more serious than that and should require a protocol similar to any other on-the-field injury.

Sports injuries can be tough, but a solution to the concussion problem doesn’t have to be difficult. It begins with education.

Parents, athletes, referees and coaches should all understand the signs, symptoms and risks of concussions.

If a student shows signs of a concussion, they should be immediately removed from play or practice.

Protocols need to be in place that define when an athlete should or should not be allowed to return to play.

We already take obvious precautions when it comes to protecting athletes. We require a mouth guard or insist that you strap on a helmet and pads, so let’s also make concussion education among our players, coaches and communities an equal part of the protections already in place.

The approach we’re suggesting isn’t expensive, but ignoring the problem is something we cannot afford. At every level sports concussions are a real problem. It doesn’t have to be.

We now have a chance to go get the ball. Let’s not drop it.