Rothstein has another entry in WolverineNation's exit interviews, this time talking to Nate Brink.
The article is paywalled, but it talks about how and why his career ended. Apparently he had several concussions, and the last one was severe enough to hospitalize him and end his career.
Sad story to read, but it sounds like he's happy he was able to make the right decision:
that's too bad
hmmm
i had not heard this news before....hope he does ok...i give a 110/100 to him for effort
Knew him in high school.
Knew him in high school. Great kid and I know he loved suiting up for the maize and blue as long as he was able to.
From the article
...Yes, I have Insider. Don't judge me.
Q: You mentioned concussion. There were a lot of rumors about what happened. Set the record straight.
Brink: It was basically probably from an accumulation of concussions over the years. It was a normal play in practice, a freak thing that happened. I was knocked unconscious for 30, 40 seconds on the field. I lost feeling in my arms and legs for a little bit. I was taken to the hospital and they diagnosed it as a concussion and central cord syndrome. They think it might have been a minor bruising of the the spinal cord, but the main thing is they think it was probably from an accumulation of concussions I had over my career. That was something we had to think about going forward as far as a risk of another one and what the possible risk would be.
[EDIT - PGB: A little too much direct quoting from the paywalled article. This one excerpt is probably okay but any more is getting into that no-no zone.]
The Team, The Team, The Team
Noted
and thanks for the heads up. I'll be more careful in the future.
The Team, The Team, The Team
Some of this is somewhat
Some of this is somewhat damning for football culture in general. Earlier i think you had a quote up where he says he would "hate to put a number" on his concussion count. Obviously the problem is an epidemic that pervades the sport at upper levels at least, but I think this quote shows that there needs to be some surveying of players regarding damage to their brain and cord. Players have shown time and again to resist reporting anything that will keep them off the field, but hey, anything might help. My guess is that Brink has been somehow predisposed to incurring greater damage while doing the same things as other players. Hopefully we can at least identify such a subset before it's too late for these people. Maybe some pre-screening of all collegiate players and follow-up care for those deemed at risk. Sadly, it sounds like Brink will live with pretty severe consequences of his injuries for the rest of his life. Of course I never played, so former (current?) players feel free to interject.
Except for the other thing. That hurts the most. But the lack of respect hurts the second most.
Hiding or ignoring concussion
Hiding or ignoring concussion symptoms is absolutely a problem. Think about how many players try to play through injuries (e.g., RGIII in the playoffs), but now make that injury almost completely invisible. Players really need to take responsibility for their own health when it comes to things like concussions. And in tandem with that, the culture of "playing through injury makes you tough" needs to be altered. I mean, Cutler still catches flack to this day for leaving a game with torn ligaments in his knee because people thought he should "tough it out." It was just a few years ago that Hines Ward publicly criticized Ben Roethlisberger for sitting out of a game to recover from a concussion. This mentality that some injuries don't require sitting out of the game is really dangerous.
Chances are pretty high that
Chances are pretty high that if you played football in high school and were physical, you probably had at least a mild concussion. I know you aren't supposed to lead with your head (spear) or intentionally knock into somebody's helmet, but there is a great deal of chaos when a player is getting blocked or tackling. If you are in the open field and trying to tackle a ball carrier, they may lower their shoulder while you are wrapping up, causing the helmets to collide.
Thing is, each HS team probably has at least 100 practices each year in addition to the games and scrimmages. I doubt every school has trainers on staff to deal with/diagnose concussions, especially with so many focusing on other things that kill HS players like heat stroke and dehydration.
Perhaps, but 100 practices is
Perhaps, but 100 practices is way too high. During the season you go full pads maybe 3 days a week. With a 10 week season and you are at 30. Double sessions for 2 weeks makes it 24 more which brings the total to about 50. That being said 50 practices of the most violent team sport on earth and you are certainly prone to some concussions.
This whole thing makes me worried. I loved playing more than anything in life and I love watching it more than most things in life. I hope they figure out how to lower the risk so my kids can play when they grow up.
"Wasn't that Michigan drive just great. That's like Patton riding into Berlin." ~Bob Ufer
The most violent team sport
The most violent team sport in the world? Please. Someone has clearly never witnessed Bo-Taoshi, the Japanese pole topping game:
There is also the Japanese
The culture, the culture, the culture
No matter what players say for the press, on the field an in the locker room it is a "badge of honor" to "play with your bell rung," and you are a [wussy] if you don't. Until that changes, the problem will continue.
I'm not in the field, but I keep up on a lot of this, and AFAIK, SPECT testing is the best resource available right now. Players should have mandatory SPECT tests as part of their physicals every year, and should also be tested whenever there is suspiscion of a concussion.
I was thinking advanced
I was thinking advanced imaging too. But I believe at this time, particularly for SPECT and some of the advanced MRI techniques (and standard MRI probably), imaging is too costly to do on a large scale.
Except for the other thing. That hurts the most. But the lack of respect hurts the second most.
This sucks
wish him the best of luck going forward. Hopefully his head injuries do not culminate in any long term problems.
I love Greg Mattison
Pipkins and Brink
2 guys carted off from practice with head/neck injuries is disturbing, let alone in one season.
Hopefully 2 anomalies and UM goes a long stretch before another one.
"Everybody wants to be a hero, so to speak. But it takes everybody." - Charles Woodson
I hope the best
for Brink moving on after football. He was one of the great examples of a player who clearly reaped the rewards of hard work under Hoke, Montgomery and Mattison's line coaching. Lord willing, may he see no ill effects from this in the future.
This is a tough issue.
" Listen... do you smell that? "
- Dr. Ray Stantz / Ghostbusters
Hoping he isn't impacted over the long term like the stories you're beginning to see.