Ed Cunningham Leaving Booth over Head Trauma
Ed Cunningham, who called the Shane Morris game, has walked away from ESPN "because he says the brain trauma to players is "unacceptable"
August 30th, 2017 at 2:45 PM ^
It depends what drugs you're talking about. It seems like the vast majority of people who are in favor of legalization are just in favor of legalizing marijuana. And while marijuana certainly isn't good for you, it's not going to do the same type of damage as CTE. That's particularly true in states where it is legalized and can be administered in less harmful forms (vaping, edibles, etc.).
August 30th, 2017 at 3:22 PM ^
August 30th, 2017 at 3:25 PM ^
August 30th, 2017 at 2:16 PM ^
where is all the outrage over boxing? mma? everything has risk. and if everybody decides they are never going to do things that may hurt them ,then we will have a very different looking world.
August 30th, 2017 at 2:24 PM ^
See a lot of youth/high school boxing and MMA?
Boxing USED to be a somewhat common HS sport/club. Now... it isn't.
August 30th, 2017 at 2:49 PM ^
But is that related to physical damage? Or did more access to organized youth sports just out recruit boxing gyms?
August 30th, 2017 at 3:05 PM ^
It's largely related to liability and inability to procure insurance... which is related to physical mental damage.
August 30th, 2017 at 3:29 PM ^
But enough kids in your gym should provide enough revenue to acquire liability insurance? These same issues plague other youth sports like football. They are offset by recruiting enough kids.
August 30th, 2017 at 3:37 PM ^
there are more concussions in youth soccer than in youth football. i coached and played both.
August 30th, 2017 at 2:29 PM ^
There was HUGE outrage over MMA. That's why the rules all changed to make it more safe.
August 30th, 2017 at 2:36 PM ^
Anyone else remember when the City of Detroit basically tried to shut down UFC when they wanted to do an event at JLA, purely because it had such a barbaric reputation? That was 20 years ago. And if anything, it only made the UFC stronger. There's no stopping people from wanting to watch fighters bleed profusely.
August 31st, 2017 at 2:06 AM ^
A little levity and nostalgia...rap to blog by...
August 30th, 2017 at 2:30 PM ^
I'd love to be the guy with the smarts and means to develop a concussion proof helmet. I'd be a billionare overnight.
August 30th, 2017 at 2:34 PM ^
August 30th, 2017 at 2:45 PM ^
Is that what some said about a moon landing?
August 30th, 2017 at 9:51 PM ^
August 30th, 2017 at 2:46 PM ^
If concussions are from the sudden stop and the brain hitting the inside of the head, then they need to develop a helmet that increases the sudden stop time interval. Outside padding, helmets made of more flexible material, designs that absorb more shock, etc. People always come to these threads saying it's impossible, but nothing is impossible with how much revenue is dependant on the sport.
August 30th, 2017 at 3:47 PM ^
August 30th, 2017 at 3:39 PM ^
its called a leather helmet. players are so protected now they play in a way that they didnt used to.
August 30th, 2017 at 2:37 PM ^
is probably just as bad
August 30th, 2017 at 2:39 PM ^
Yep. Soccer is definitely bad.
August 30th, 2017 at 8:45 PM ^
August 30th, 2017 at 2:42 PM ^
It is not, and it's not close.
Studies have been done.
August 30th, 2017 at 3:13 PM ^
on the list of head injury occurance per 100 athletes. Lacross in #4 and #5,
Football #1 and Hockey #2 by a mile over #3
Soccer is a dangerous sport, but relative to football its no where near as dangerous.
August 30th, 2017 at 3:42 PM ^
just head injuries. of course football overall is a more dangerous sport.
August 30th, 2017 at 11:02 PM ^
I meant dangerous relative to head injuries, just didn't make that clear all the info was regarding head injuries only.
August 30th, 2017 at 3:27 PM ^
August 30th, 2017 at 3:43 PM ^
I view professional soccer more as performance art than a true sport. The audience probably takes as much joy from a well performed dive as a good shot on goal.
August 30th, 2017 at 8:44 PM ^
August 30th, 2017 at 2:44 PM ^
My argument with this subject is the following:
Football is a dangerous sport. That is not a secret. The leagues and companies making the equipment can do only so much to make it safer, but there will always be dangers. Also, the players know what they are getting into. They realize the long-term risks or at least should.
EDIT: Magnus brilliantly beat me to my point. He is right.
August 30th, 2017 at 2:48 PM ^
Full contact, tackle football starts in third grade in my town (Northville). I am not sure where I stand on this, but significant damage can be done well before the participants are reasonably able to weigh the risks themselves.
August 30th, 2017 at 3:01 PM ^
But kids don't play football without parental consent because kids are incapable of giving consent.
The kids might not be able to weigh the risks, but the parents should be able to.
August 30th, 2017 at 3:29 PM ^
I think the point is there are things that are considered dangerous enough for kids (drinking alcohol, smoking cigarettes) that the choice is taken out of the parents' hands. I'm not an expert on the science of this, but I think the fact that most of the decisions to get into this sport are made before the age of consent mostly invalidates the argument of "they know the risks."
August 30th, 2017 at 3:58 PM ^
But it doesn't invalidate the argument that the people who are giving consent, the parents, konw the risks. Have you seen the liability waivers that parents have to sign for their kids to play football?
And are you really equating youth football to underage drinking and smoking? Does football impair your judgement like alcohol does? Is football an addictive drug like tobacco products?
I think an overwhelming majority of parents would rather have their sons playing football than drinking or smoking. And I think 'society' would too.
August 31st, 2017 at 2:11 AM ^
and they are putting their socioeconomic foot down.
But just because a parent says it is OK to smoke should we absolve kid and parent from anti-smoking laws? In fact are those laws valid by your argument?
August 31st, 2017 at 9:23 AM ^
In free society people can choose what activities they and their children engage in. I'm not saying all kids should play football, but to equate it to underage drinking or smoking is absurd. Alcohol has an immediate effect on your judgement. That is why you can't drive after drinking. Smoking tobacco is a highly addictive (chemical addiction) activity that has a highly negative impact on your health. Playing football doesn't impair your judgement and it isn't highly chemically addictive.
August 30th, 2017 at 2:42 PM ^
Pretty sure he was assuming on camera that he was suspended for the season opener.
August 30th, 2017 at 2:45 PM ^
in hunting accidents, or boating accidents and OBVIOUSLY living in the wrong area of Chicago. Hey Ed - this is the choice of the people that play the game of football. What a political asshat ! Good riddance.
Go Blue!
August 30th, 2017 at 3:10 PM ^
Hunting accident death rates are about 0.6/100,000 (~80 per year with 13.7 million hunters)
Football death rates are about 1/100,000 (~12 per year with 1.2 million participants)
August 30th, 2017 at 3:45 PM ^
August 30th, 2017 at 2:51 PM ^
August 30th, 2017 at 2:52 PM ^
I accept the growing and troubling evidence of brain trauma among current and retired football players. I also can't bring myself to not watch the spectacle, intrigue, and entertainment that is college football year after year. I think I am not alone in holding these two seemingly contradictory views.
August 30th, 2017 at 3:04 PM ^
Its ok. More information benefits everyone. Perhaps fewer people will play football in the future, but those that do chose to play will have made that choice with the best available information. We can still enjoy watching those who choose to play. The bigger travesty would be covering CTE up, which fortunately it appears is not happenning, or ending the game.
August 30th, 2017 at 8:40 PM ^
August 31st, 2017 at 2:13 AM ^
plus one of those things that can not be spoken of.
August 30th, 2017 at 2:55 PM ^
Ed made a lot of annoying off the wall comments during broadcasts. I always thought he was a bit of a douche canoe.
August 30th, 2017 at 2:59 PM ^
August 30th, 2017 at 4:00 PM ^
But Mad Hatter made it a glorius shit show.
August 30th, 2017 at 3:07 PM ^
to be demoted or fired and come up with a self-serving excuse as the reason for his change of scenery.
Of all the announcers on the college football circuit Ed was simply one of the worst ones out there to me. I will not miss him at all.
August 30th, 2017 at 3:09 PM ^
have some responsibility for the issues in the game, the culture of disregarding player health.
It's them who hyped up reckless aggression and condemned players putting safety first (a player given the tag 'contact-shy' may as well be given the tag 'lazy and cowardly' as it has the same connotations in the football community).
Rather than quitting, maybe Ed would have done better by staying and calling games with a different attitude as an example of how it can be done.