Should BYU Drop its Football Program?

[smac97]

I wonder if BYU should consider dropping its football program.  I am aware that it has a deep and strong and rich heritage and tradition, but football seems to be too dangerous a sport.  Consider, e.g., this (emphases added):

Quote

Bob Costas: Football May Soon 'Collapse Like a House of Cards'
He says the 'fundamental' danger of football will likely be its undoing

By Michael Harthorne,  Newser Staff

Bob Costas says football, at least as we know it, may soon "collapse like a house of cards" because of one "fundamental fact": "This game destroys people's brains." USA Today reports the Emmy award-winning sports broadcaster and former host of Football Night in America called the decline of the NFL as a "cash machine" the biggest story in American sports while speaking Tuesday at the University of Maryland. And Costas said that decline is not about athletes' knees but their brains. "Unless and until there is some technology which we cannot even imagine, let alone has been developed, that would make this inherently dangerous game not marginally safer, but acceptably safe, the cracks in the foundation are there," the Washington Post quotes Costas as saying.

In one of three studies on CTE released by Boston University since July, researchers found evidence of CTE in all but one of 111 brains belonging to former NFL players, the New York Daily News reports. And Costas noted that multiple independent studies show tackle football is most dangerous for the brains of youths under 20. He said parents will soon make the "common-sense" choice, as he would, to not let their kids play tackle football at least until they're 18, eroding the talent base for college football and the NFL.

What do you think?  Is sponsoring football a good idea for the Church, given the potential (and actual) injuries involved?  There are other factors as well (tickets have become crazy expensive, etc.).

Thanks,

-Smac

[Scott Lloyd]

The propensity of football to cause brain damage might help explain the recent silly fad among NFL players to "take a knee" while the National Anthem is played.

[smac97]

There are so many sports that are less prone to cause head injuries.  Boxing (including MMA?) and football, on the other hand, seem to be the worst.  BYU, however, only has a football program.

Thanks,

-Smac

[Avatar4321]

no.

[hope_for_things]

18 minutes ago, smac97 said:

I wonder if BYU should consider dropping its football program.  I am aware that it has a deep and strong and rich heritage and tradition, but football seems to be too dangerous a sport.  Consider, e.g., this (emphases added):

What do you think?  Is sponsoring football a good idea for the Church, given the potential (and actual) injuries involved?  There are other factors as well (tickets have become crazy expensive, etc.).

Thanks,

-Smac

Personally, I'm torn on this because I'm a hypocrite.  I love to watch football, I've been a BYU season ticket holder for a long time, and I love going to the games and really enjoy the sport as a spectator.  That said, I would never let my kid participate, and I'm constantly talking to friends that have kids in little league football and in recent years I've been trying to raise a concern about brain injuries and asking them pointed questions about how comfortable they are with the risks they are taking with their kids.  After I watched the Will Smith Concussion movie and have to say that was an emotional game changer for me on some level. 

Since that time I've been getting more and more uncomfortable with my cognitive dissonance over this issue.  I know at some level that my financial support is propping up a sport that is dangerous to those participating.  I'm torn between my love of the sport and my support for something that is hurting people at some level.  I don't know what BYU should do, I'm torn about that too.  

[Maestrophil]

From the results I see this year, it looks like they already have!  

[smac97]

20 minutes ago, Avatar4321 said:

no.

Ok.  Care to elaborate?

[smac97]

14 minutes ago, hope_for_things said:

Personally, I'm torn on this because I'm a hypocrite.  I love to watch football, I've been a BYU season ticket holder for a long time, and I love going to the games and really enjoy the sport as a spectator.  That said, I would never let my kid participate, and I'm constantly talking to friends that have kids in little league football and in recent years I've been trying to raise a concern about brain injuries and asking them pointed questions about how comfortable they are with the risks they are taking with their kids.  After I watched the Will Smith Concussion movie and have to say that was an emotional game changer for me on some level. 

I feel ya.  I was previously a big football fan, but my circumstances over the last decade have pretty much precluded me from watching or attending games.  During that same decade, I have been raising sons and keeping them out of football, and also reading numerous articles about traumatic brain injuries caused by football.

14 minutes ago, hope_for_things said:

Since that time I've been getting more and more uncomfortable with my cognitive dissonance over this issue.  I know at some level that my financial support is propping up a sport that is dangerous to those participating.  I'm torn between my love of the sport and my support for something that is hurting people at some level.  I don't know what BYU should do, I'm torn about that too.  

My sense is that BYU should drop its football program, and try to find some other way to foster "school spirit."

Thanks,

-Smac

[Jeanne]

You guys might be breaking GG's heart...of course, there are other sports.  I have always been a sports fan...football...basketball..all of it pretty much.  I am still an avid NASCAR fan...but I have seen the changes..not just in college for whatever reason..but in celebrity sport we have taken a step back.  I miss the good ol' days..now it seems that everything is about the $$$ and though there are many people/players I admire..a lot of them are not good examples to young people anymore.  This may be no fault of their own..but because of said money...business and political reasons...it is no longer the same.  I feel bad about all of this...Where would my Utes be without BYU...no fun!!  Now it is win at all cost..even to brain injury.  I dunno...but my heart breaks like GG...I need a team....something to look forward to..a reason to win something.

[CV75]

26 minutes ago, smac97 said:

There are so many sports that are less prone to cause head injuries.  Boxing (including MMA?) and football, on the other hand, seem to be the worst.  BYU, however, only has a football program.

Thanks,

-Smac

The is why Joseph Smith promoted pulling sticks.

[rodheadlee]

Can't modern science develop a helmet that works ?

[smac97]

7 minutes ago, CV75 said:

The is why Joseph Smith promoted pulling sticks.

I have a concern about sports that, through design or application, cause substantial injury to the human body.  So that would be football, boxing, and probably most MMA stuff.

Thanks,

-Smac

[churchistrue]

As an alum and die hard fan for many years, I would have to say, if we keep losing like this, go ahead and take us out of our misery.   Without big conference affiliation, the future looks bleak.

 

 

[smac97]

2 minutes ago, rodheadlee said:

Can't modern science develop a helmet that works ?

As I understand it, the problem has a lot to do with basic physics.  The human brain has the consistency of soft tofu.  So the physics of playing football, inertia, momentum, acceleration/deceleration, etc., all can adversely affect the brain.

I don't think a helmet, no matter how well-designed, can overcome these issues.

And then there are the injuries to joints, and tendons and ligaments, and the spine . . . 

Thanks,

-Smac

[smac97]

19 minutes ago, Jeanne said:

You guys might be breaking GG's heart...of course, there are other sports.  I have always been a sports fan...football...basketball..all of it pretty much.  I am still an avid NASCAR fan...but I have seen the changes..not just in college for whatever reason..but in celebrity sport we have taken a step back. 

I am likewise a bit put off by the "celebrity" aspect of football (though it happens in other sports as well, so...).

Thanks,

-Smac

[thesometimesaint]

I'm not a big football fan. But after the players reach 18 years old the risk assessment is up to them.  Sports doctors are still working on trying to come up with a helmet that further reduces the risk of brain damage.

[The Nehor]

Switch to rugby. Has impacts but they are usually not as abrupt or head to head in opposite directions.

[The Nehor]

54 minutes ago, Scott Lloyd said:

The propensity of football to cause brain damage might help explain the recent silly fad among NFL players to "take a knee" while the National Anthem is played.

I am more worried about the mental health of those who treat a small symbolic gesture towards a non-offensive cause as a personal affront.

[Brother Bear]

1 minute ago, The Nehor said:

Switch to rugby. Has impacts but they are usually not as abrupt or head to head in opposite directions.

I’d be in favor of repurposing Lavell Edwards stadium into a rugby pitch...and elevating BYU’s rugby team from club status

[hope_for_things]

26 minutes ago, smac97 said:

I feel ya.  I was previously a big football fan, but my circumstances over the last decade have pretty much precluded me from watching or attending games.  During that same decade, I have been raising sons and keeping them out of football, and also reading numerous articles about traumatic brain injuries caused by football.

My sense is that BYU should drop its football program, and try to find some other way to foster "school spirit."

Thanks,

-Smac

You might be right, but I honestly don't see BYU taking the lead on dropping the sport over this issue.  They will follow the culture, and if other colleges start dropping the sport, then I could see BYU seriously considering it.  It would take a major collapse of this very lucrative and powerful industry, revenues for the NFL would need to dry up, viewership fall off the cliff, and sponsors stop supporting it, then maybe some programs like BYU will drop their support of the sport.  

[smac97]

5 minutes ago, thesometimesaint said:

I'm not a big football fan. But after the players reach 18 years old the risk assessment is up to them. 

The LDS Church teaches much about the sanctity of the human body.  Latter-day Saints are taught their bodies are "temples," such that the Church has a bunch of teachings about how we treat and use our bodies (Word of Wisdom, modest clothing, piercings/tattoos, Law of Chastity, etc.).  

The topic of this thread is whether BYU should continue to sponsor a sport that has very substantial (and frequently actualized) risks of injuries to the players' brains, joints, spine, etc.

5 minutes ago, thesometimesaint said:

Sports doctors are still working on trying to come up with a helmet that further reduces the risk of brain damage.

Interesting.

Thanks,

-Smac

[Scott Lloyd]

5 minutes ago, The Nehor said:

I am more worried about the mental health of those who treat a small symbolic gesture towards a non-offensive cause as a personal affront.

Perhaps you played too much football when you were younger. 

[smac97]

1 minute ago, hope_for_things said:

You might be right, but I honestly don't see BYU taking the lead on dropping the sport over this issue. 

That's my general assessment, too.

1 minute ago, hope_for_things said:

They will follow the culture,

Perhaps.  And perhaps there are too many football fans in the Church and among the leadership for such a drastic change to get much traction.

1 minute ago, hope_for_things said:

and if other colleges start dropping the sport, then I could see BYU seriously considering it.  It would take a major collapse of this very lucrative and powerful industry, revenues for the NFL would need to dry up, viewership fall off the cliff, and sponsors stop supporting it, then maybe some programs like BYU will drop their support of the sport.  

The story in the OP is guessing that we are headed to such a collapse.

We'll see.

Thanks,

-Smac

[The Nehor]

4 minutes ago, smac97 said:

The LDS Church teaches much about the sanctity of the human body.  Latter-day Saints are taught their bodies are "temples," such that the Church has a bunch of teachings about how we treat and use our bodies (Word of Wisdom, modest clothing, piercings/tattoos, Law of Chastity, etc.).  

The topic of this thread is whether BYU should continue to sponsor a sport that has very substantial (and frequently actualized) risks of injuries to the players' brains, joints, spine, etc.

Interesting.

Thanks,

-Smac

I see some (not all) sports as “not as sanitized as we seem to think” modernizations of human sacrifices, blood sports, and gladiator fights.

[The Nehor]

5 minutes ago, Scott Lloyd said:

Perhaps you played too much football when you were younger. 

I prefer sparring. If you are going to damage each other you might as well just punch them.