OT-Ivy League eliminates tackling at Practice

As probably the only person on this board that religiously follows Ivy League football, I will confirm that this hasn't hurt Dartmouth in the slightest. They have an absolutely lethal offense and their D isn't half bad either. There is no reason to not to this. It's a brilliant move and could be easily translated into power 5 and the pros.

As the Dartmouth coach said, at this level, players know how to give and take hits. They don't need that coaching. Preserving their bodies makes far more sense. This really is an excellent move.

Looks safe to me.

Not surprising as the Ivy League distances itself as much as possible from big time football.

They don't even participate in the NCAA Tournament. 

That's just ridiculous. I get the need to limit players exposure to injuries, but this seems like it would only increase the injuries in games. Ideally, coaches promote and perfect proper tackling techniques in practice so that proper tackling is second nature in games.

high schools in southern Ohio have been doing this for a few years now

Bovada Sports Book has Harvard as 4/1 favorites to win the 2023 robot intercollegiate football championship.

To date, the robots aren't very good. Probably only a matter of time until they are taking over the human species.

If you read the article. Smart decision!

I am of the political party that gets involved in this stuff, and it makes me sick. I played football. I knew the risks of playing football just as I knew the risk of throwing a baseball toward a hitter sixty feet away who wanted to send it back at me with as much force as possible. I played the games because they were FUN. They were RELAXING. It helped shape me into who I am.

It was the best time of my life getting bruised up against my friends. Slamming helmets into one another in the Oklahoma Drill  at Spring Practice. Football is the one game where it's okay to hit other people. It's good for some people -- an escape from the problems of the world that so many kids experience at home, in the streets, and in their neighborhoods. Just because a few guys got depressed after a few too many collisions is not a reason to ruin it for the rest of us that loved the game and have done no harm to ourselves or those around us.

Let this sink in: a kid who goes to an Ivy League school and doesn't get to play until his senior year will have gone nearly four calendar years without tackling on a football field or being tackled. What is the point of even practicing and playing the game at that point? He could go play intramurals (if the Ivy League schools even have such a thing) and not have nearly the time commitment for the same exact thing.

This is probably a good idea. The game of football needs to change to protect its players. 

We're going to see mostly terrible defenses in the near future

There has to be a Family Guy, London Sillinannies reference to be made out there somewhere.  Alas, my forum skills are still insufficient to make such magical wonders happen.

Dartmouth gets it, they actually get what football is all about. Why even have the kids tackling the dummies, why don't we have bigger robots destroying other bigger robots. This is the ground floor of the evolution of the game. I'm seeing a bright future - Robot NFL, Robo-Goodell on a 40 Million bitcoin salary. This is how we FIX FOOTBALL guys, by MAKING IT SAFE

 

This topic is really interesting for me since last month I finished my PhD at Michigan and now work at Dartmouth.  

I think Dartmouth won the league last year... so it must not be the worst idea.  Forward thinking... if you had 11 of these dumbies that were computer controlled and cordinated, you could implement other teams offensises, simulate actual game speed, and give players a chance to practice against their competition before the game.

 

 

to tackle with our shoulder pads (hit, lift, and drive).

We can have football much the way it is, with the absolute insistence, through rules and referee implementation, that there be no contact with the head, or near the head. Tackling everywhere from the neck on down leaves plenty of room for good, solid impact.

Tackle as hard as you can. Just stay away from the other players head, and don't use your head in any way, shape or form to augment a tackle.

Isolated incidents are bound to occur, but hitting and tackling can evolve to keep the head area out of harms way in most instances.

Link to SI article titled "More than just smart guys: Harvard's reputation growing in the NFL"

Just in case you felt sorry for athletic dudes who also go to Harvard and control most of the Universe.  

Just like you shouldn't join Marine Corps infantry if you don't want to get shot at.  

High risk, high reward for the opportunity to play college football and try out for the NFL. 

I have a feeling that in about 10-15 years, there are going to be a lot of Huge college stadiums available for the lacrosse and soccer teams to use whenever they want.   

Tackling needs to be practiced. Specifically if the concerns are about player safety, proper tackling absolutely needs to be practiced. The ivy league telling high school coaches to prevent players from bashing helmets for fun would likely do 100 times more to prevent cte than tackle robots.

If football is going to stay anything like it is now these changes have to be made.  You can teach how to tackle without regular full contact practices.  All good research on the subject says this will help players' health.

Shouldn't be a problem. Ivy League doesn't bother to tackle during the season.