Kostya Kennedy absolutely nails the fundamental final result well-nigh concussions inwards football game inwards his book, "Lasting Impact."
At the end, he writes, "The notion of football game every bit a sport overwhelmingly played past times the have-notes as well as consumed past times the haves is non an slowly notion to bear. Something volition live on deeply lost."
We all have got read the stories well-nigh retired pro football game players who are suffering from encephalon injuries afterwards inwards life. Gale Sayers, the Hall of Fame running back, only added his lift to the listing recently. Are nosotros headed to a fourth dimension when the solely people who volition accept the run a jeopardy of playing football game are those alongside the to the lowest degree to lose? In other words, is football game going downwards a path that was pioneered past times boxing? Because inwards price of full general interest, that has turned into a route to something approaching irrelevance.
We don't know yet. But Kennedy headed to high schoolhouse inwards 2014 to come across what the football game landscape looked similar at that level. He establish a sport alongside enough of positives going for it, but alongside the concussion lurking nearby similar a thunderstorm inwards the distance.
He did it past times spending fourth dimension alongside the New Rochelle football game team, located due north of New York City. New Rochelle is a good-sized suburb alongside a mix of demographics roaming its schoolhouse hallways. The Huguenauts have got had expert success over the years, ordinarily fielding winning teams cheers to a veteran motorcoach who worries well-nigh X's as well as O's some of the fourth dimension as well as his players' personal problems at others.
There are profiles of the coaches, administrators as well as players, naturally. Lou DiRienzo, the motorcoach of the team, comes off pretty well. High schoolhouse caput coaches have a picayune to a greater extent than exposure to real-world problems than those to a higher house the nutrient chain inwards college as well as the pros; those guiding such teams are a picayune to a greater extent than isolated from the players on an everyday basis.
Every then often, Kennedy has to shift his focus to the existent Blue Planet - for example, the expiry of ii high schoolhouse football game histrion relatively around New Rochelle. And that doesn't include concussions that seem to live on something around a weekly occurrence inwards football game these days.
Just to add together an unexpected twist to the story, who enters the scene but Ray Rice - only after he was released past times his NFL squad after a video was released showing him hitting his hereafter married adult woman inwards an elevator. Rice played for New Rochelle, as well as returned to his high schoolhouse during the flavor inwards the middle of the contestation surrounding the province of affairs as well as his fate inwards it.
New Rochelle at to the lowest degree came through for Kennedy alongside a expert season. But the writer wisely doesn't larn bogged downwards inwards also many details of a twelvemonth that is inwards the past times as well as won't live on that interesting to most readers - fifty-fifty though it's slowly to beginning for some of the people involved. Kennedy is to a greater extent than interested inwards focusing on how high schoolhouse football game tin forcefulness out render support, discipline, as well as bonding for kids. It does that inwards many cases, but it also leaves kids on the sidelines alongside headaches - as well as who knows what's ahead for them?
Kennedy wrote a duo of terrific books on Joe DiMaggio's streak as well as Pete Rose. This majority isn't quite then land compelling because of the less-famous dependent matter, but the author's smarts even then come upwardly through nicely here.
By the goal of "Lasting Impact," Kennedy even then isn't certain whether he'd permit a boy of his play high schoolhouse football. He writes that he had no agenda going in, as well as even then didn't have got 1 going out. Kennedy tin forcefulness out come across arguments on both sides.The romantic side of high schoolhouse football game is even then appealing, but the risks of playing larn to a greater extent than existent all the time. It's tough to know what the correct respond is inwards every case.
Four stars
Learn to a greater extent than well-nigh this book.
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