Long Island High School Football Player Dies After On-Field Collision: Officials

[Scairp]

Source: NBC

A Long Island high schooler died after colliding with another player during a football game Wednesday evening, authorities said.

Tom Cutinella, a junior at Shoreham-Wading River High School in Shoreham, was pronounced dead at Huntington Hospital after collapsing on the field after the hit during a varsity football game at John Glenn High School in Elwood, according to a statement from school district superintendent Steven Cohen.


Read more: http://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/Tom-Cutinella-Football-Player-Death-Shoreham-Wading-High-School-Long-Island-Elmwood-277846761.html

---

This is weird timing. Last night I caught the "Frontline" investigation on the NFL and brain trauma. I had watched it before but not without distractions, so this time I gave it my full attention. I have decided that football has zero redeeming value and should not even exist. It's violent, promoting violence and failing to understand that people are dying merely because they played this game.

[sakabatou]

1. We should know what happened in the next week or so

[MissB]

2. Our local high school cut their football program

completely a few years ago, because of concern over injuries. Kids migrated to soccer or running.

This kid was way too young to die. So sad.

[Iamthetruth]

6. Feel sorry for the kids there

Overreacting adults are never the answer.

[Scairp]

51. No such thing when it comes to football

I say "bravo" to that school district for eliminating football. They have surely saved lives by doing that. You prefer brain damage to doing the right thing?

[Iamthetruth]

54. Really

That is the definition of overreacting.

[Scairp]

55. Really?

And you are the definition of uncaring human in denial. We cannot react enough when is comes to head injuries and brain trauma stemming from football.

[Iamthetruth]

68. Funny stuff

So less than 1% of kids that play get seriously injured and you want to shut the entire sport down. By your logic we should do away with all cars, trains, planes, electricity, cigarettes, alcohol and anything else that has caused the death or injury of someone. Hell, let's outlaw sex as well, people have died of diseases as well. Yup, great logic there.

[Scairp]

69. What a cold fish you are

You really don't care about the players do you? And where the hell are you getting this nonsense about 1 % of kids getting seriously injured? And what exactly is a serious injury, in your mind? These are preventable injuries in young people, and you can never be too radical when it comes to literally saving the lives of young people. Football is unnecessary to maintain life, unlike many of the ridiculous, apples and oranges examples you give in your nonsensical post. And this would be my final statement to you: all you and your ilk care about is the entertainment and the vicarious thrill you get from watching these players beat each other senseless. People like you make me sick.

From Boston University re: CTE (chronic traumatic encephalopathy)

Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE) is a progressive degenerative disease of the brain found in athletes (and others) with a history of repetitive brain trauma, including symptomatic concussions as well as asymptomatic subconcussive hits to the head.

[Iamthetruth]

72. Ilk?

Preventable injuries, what a joke. Better get inside, I hear the sun is coming out tomorrow.

[aggiesal]

74. I love your responses ...

I don't want to see kids get injured, and I never played organized football, even though
I really wanted to play. My dad said baseball only, and I have no regrets.

But let's take a look at the numbers, all are educated guesses but I don't believe it's that far off.
There are 350 million in the country.
Half are women and the majority don't play football so that leaves 175 million
Half of those are under 22 years old, so that means that approximate 90 million males available to play HS or College football.

There are 26,407 high schools in the US.
If each school have a football team with 35 players, there woukd be no more then 924245 students playing high school football. That's approximately .3% of the population that might play football.
Not all players get injured.

Football is one sport that teaches teamwork, discipline, perseverance, and keeps you fit. I'm sure there are more redeeming values not listed.

So yes I believe that alot less then 1% get serious injuries, and it does teach some life lessons.

Just my 2 cents.

[Iamthetruth]

76. It just blows me away

People wonder why the kids coming out of college struggle so much with the real world. We coddle people way too much today, we try to dumb down everything in an effort to protect everyone from everything. Guess what, life is full of risky decisions. I never pushed him to play football, I told him he had to play a sport at all times during the school year, that was it. I believe I am a good father but there are things that I could not have taught him that he has learned from being part of the football and track teams.

[Brickbat]

63. Read up on brain damage for soccer players.

If you think switching from football to soccer is saving brains, you're wrong.

[MissB]

60. From your title I thought you meant

you felt sorry for the kids that witnessed the death of the young man.

[Arugula Latte]

57. Good for them. I'd love it if all high schools did that.

Hopefully that awful game will eventually wither and die.

[MissB]

59. It's been a cultural change for the parents and community.

The kids don't seem to mind.

Homecoming is different now. Instead of the homecoming football game, we have a homecoming soccer game. The parents and community seem to have embraced it. It was strange the first year.

All kids that participate in any school sponsored sport (even cross country) have to have an annual concussion baseline test right before fall sport season. It's contracted out and is done at the high school. Kids can't go to their first practice until they've been through the concussion testing.

[ALBliberal]

3. Soccer is also dangerous

Last week at my son's high school varsity game a young man on the opposing team collided with our keeper and ended up with a concussion and a blood clot in the brain. Now out for the season. Scary.

[whistler162]

12. Guy I work with shattered his lower

leg in a soccer game.

[ALBliberal]

28. ouch

[Scairp]

70. Sure it can be

But I highly doubt that David Beckham is going to suffer from Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy in his 50's. Soccer isn't inherently violent, football is.

[ALBliberal]

73. young man died recently

A former University of New Mexico soccer player Patrick Grange died in Feb and was found to have CTE. The first soccer player to be diagnosed with CTE. His mom talked about how he always "headed" the ball even at an early age. I am sure CTE is more common in football but unfortunately its showing up in soccer as well.

[santroy79]

78. No soccer is not also dangerous

because someone got hurt playing soccer does not make it unsafe. You can get hurt taking a shower or riding a bike or walking to the school bus stop or down your stairs in your house.

Soccer played the way its to be played is not harmful. Yes accidents can happen and someone can get hurt but that can happen in anything.

The reason football is dangerous is because of the consent blows to the head over and over. All the hits just in practice alone. Thats why its so unsafe playing for young kids because their skulls & brains are not fully developed while taking those hits over and over. Young kids playing soccer do not have that happen on a regular basics if at all

[Brickbat]

79. Kids are not hitting their heads over and over in practice, or games.

Nor are they hitting each other hard enough to cause a whiplash.

[santroy79]

84. yes they are

and they are constantly making impact in practice even if its not their head hitting

[littlemissmartypants]

4. Football has passed the 'sell by' date.

For so many reasons.

[Iamthetruth]

8. That may be your opinion

And you're welcome to it, others have opinions I'm 100% sure you don't agree with. Fact is, 99% of all high school football players will never experience severe injury but we never hear of them.

[littlemissmartypants]

11. And I would venture to guess, many are

Injured that we never hear about, as well. The long term effects are well documented. I cannot, in good conscience, esteem a sport that has known long term detrimental neurological effects, for children.

[Iamthetruth]

44. Do you use that example for everything else

I guess you don't drive as people die in car accidents.
I guess you don't drink as some people can't control themselves.
The more I think about it, what are you not afraid of?

[littlemissmartypants]

45. I have given you a civil, honest answer, from my heart, now please leave me alone. nt

[Iamthetruth]

49. Why

It may be from your heart but not your head. Did you play football? Did you know anyone who did play football? It's a sport, it's a contact sport and it builds character and leadership.

[sendero]

58. Didn't seem..

... to work for you.

[Iamthetruth]

67. I would think

The 122 employees I have would disagree with you as well as my two sons and the many kids I have coached over the years. Kids that have gone on to play college and pro football that would never have gotten out of high school without the game. Feel free to list your side of my character.

[Hoppy]

16. Yeah, well look what football did to poor Ronny Raygun.

He tried to help the old Gipper and it fucked up his head somthin' terrible...wasn't able to think right, much after that.

Come to think of it, his wife's head wasn't that much better (I sleep with a cute little pistol under my pillow. Oh yeah, the astronomer she consulted for important decisions.) and she didn't even play football. So who knows.

[madokie]

20. Crazy has no bounds

those two, Ronnie and Nancy fit the definition of crazy well. did not give two shits about what the effects of what they did or said had on our citizens or our country or hell the whole world for that matter.

[alp227]

37. So? Serious football injuries can be LIFE CHANGING in so many ways.

Unfortunately, the costs of the few injured players who are maimed for life (whether experiencing brain issues later in life or are wheelchair bound) outweigh the benefits of the healthy majority.

[Scairp]

46. You need an education

Head injuries are invisible, so how would you know that only a tiny percentage of football players are never severely injured? And the fact is, to varying degrees, most high school football players DO sustain brain trauma. You never hear about it because so many times the high school player and their parents may not know themselves the kid has a head injury. The NFL has fought this truth for decades but that doesn't make it any less true. And really, I am sick of people citing other sport injuries as evidence that all sports are inherently dangerous. Football is unlike almost all other contact sports, or even non-contact sports because of the very way it is played. Parents (and YOU), are in denial and whether it's during their playing years or after they are done with football, the kid will pay the price for that denial. Considering what is now known about brain trauma and football, I really don't know how parents can allow their child to participate. IMO, it borders on abuse. In a perfect world football would be abolished as a sport. It is entirely too dangerous.

[barbtries]

5. a local high school football player died this week here in NC as well

http://abc11.com/328013/
reportedly collapsed before the game.
i share your feelings and am at a loss as to why so many people love it so much. but they sure do, my son among them.

[muriel_volestrangler]

33. And one in Alabama this week:

In Alabama on Friday, Charles Henderson High School cornerback Demario Harris collapsed early in a game after tackling an opponent.

"There didn't seem to be anything dramatic with it," Harris coach Brad McCoy told AL.com. "He was walking back to the huddle and collapsed."

Mr McCoy said doctors told him Harris had ruptured a pre-existing brain aneurysm.
...
"Contrary to various media reports, my son had a brain haemorrhage, not an aneurysm, that was caused by a hit he took during Friday's game. He may have had a pre-existing condition, but there is no way to tell now," Demario Harris Sr said.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-29463130

[santroy79]

7. well first

Both my kids want to play football and I will not let them. They are 10 & 13

but to say "football has zero redeeming value and should not even exist"

is a pretty dumb statement. Just simple things like getting exercise & learning to be a team member is redeeming value. Not to mention kids need to have decent grades to play.

[Iamthetruth]

9. If your kids would have a good coach

Who teaches good fundamentals, you should let your kids play. I learned so much from the game I know I would not be where I am today without it.

[Elmer S. E. Dump]

17. Not only that, but...

Most kids dying on the football field have (in my experience) been due to congenital problems that were revealed under high physical stress. If they ran cross country the same thing could happen. They might as well ban all sports if people won't listen to all the facts.

[thesquanderer]

40. Except that all of football's redeeming values also exist in other activities

that are far less likely to cause serious injury or death.

[Scairp]

47. I take exception with your characterization

The statement is not dumb. It comes from being informed and understanding how very dangerous football is to young men and boys. There are other, less lethal ways to get exercise and learn this value of being a team player. There is no safe way to play football. It is a fucked up activity (masquerading as a sport), and so are the politics surrounding it, not to mention the aggressive attitudes that appear from your average football fan whenever anyone tries to tell them how dangerous football actually is. The push-back is disturbing to say the least, and another demonstration of how football perpetuates violence in humans in every aspect, even the ones who don't actually play. Try the Boy Scouts. They don't allow kids to bash one another's brains in while calling it "fun".

[edgineered]

10. And the crowd cheered...

With nowhere to direct my outrage about this I sit here fuming, wondering how big the signs have to be for people to wake up and stop this viscous cycle of violence sold to us. The people promoting and supporting these activities are also content with our permanent state of war, abuse of women, racism, and homophobic discrimination.

I have decided that football has zero redeeming value and should not even exist. It's violent, promoting violence and failing to understand that people are dying merely because they played this game.

Scairp, had you spoken these words to the crowd attending the game silent blank glazes from the stands would have been the result. As the gurney left the playing field the referee's whistle blew to restart the game. And the crowd once again cheered.

[Archae]

13. So...when do we call for ending boxing too?

And baseball?

Hockey?

Soccer?

Lacrosse?

ANY sport can have dangers associated with it.

Even golf.
Golf?
Oh yes.
Every year someone gets hit with a golf ball, and I can tell you it smarts.

Some sports have been banned for being overly dangerous, like bare-knuckle boxing, or excessively cruel like dogfighting.

But football is always going to have danger in it, it is a contact sport.

[edgineered]

14. Being able to become better

Being able to become better isn't like turning on a switch Archae. It is my belief, although you are free to disagree, that each small step I take to make myself a more understanding, compassionate, and peaceful person is a good thing. By myself I cannot change the world, yet somehow those closest to me are doing their best to be better also. I'm sorry if you feel that it is a lost cause.

[Elmer S. E. Dump]

18. You are an understanding person?

The people promoting and supporting these activities are also content with our permanent state of war, abuse of women, racism, and homophobic discrimination.

I grew up watching the ice bowl and played football, and love the Packers and UW football. Does that really make me a warmonger, misogynist, racist, and homophobe? I think you need to work on that a bit more.

Hyperbole never helps a conversation.

[edgineered]

19. People of understanding do not have the need

People of understanding do not have the need for me to include a clause at the end of my first sentence.

Just for you I will add it here:

The people promoting and supporting these activities are also content with our permanent state of war, abuse of women, racism, and homophobic discrimination, whereas those who do not promote and support these activities are also not warmongers, misogynists, racists, and homophobes.

Are your feelings less hurt now, tough guy?

[Elmer S. E. Dump]

22. Pretty crappy sentence contruction, but it's still appreciated.

And I am NOT a tough guy. I'm a lover, not a fighter.

[edgineered]

39. The effect of my statements is clear and I stand by them.

No need exists for further comments, either you get it, will get it, or continue through life not looking beyond your own attitudes. There was a long time that I missed out on most of the world using just one set of eyes. Nothing personal, just saying. As far as full contact sports are concerned those whose play of the game lacks an aggressive attacking approach do not fare well.

Nothing more.

[Elmer S. E. Dump]

42. OK, nice posting with ya.

No offense taken.

[former9thward]

25. Your posts are nothing but hyperbole.

And false.

[Scairp]

48. Question

If you had know that something like 80+% of football players end up with brain damage that will disable them and/or shorten their lives after football, would you still have watched the Ice Bowl and played football and loved the Packers and UW football? Sticking one's head in the sand doesn't make it untrue.

[Elmer S. E. Dump]

56. As long as it's on TV, I will watch. I love football. Sorry.

[Scairp]

65. You apparently hate the players though

Or at the very least couldn't care less about their well-being. Nice.

[Elmer S. E. Dump]

71. Yeah, sure.

[tblue37]

77. A study was described in a couple of articles I read recently. They autopsied the

brains of 79 retired pro players after they died. Of those 79, 76 had brain damage. Not good odds.

[HockeyMom]

21. You forgot Ice Hockey

Checking into boards, high sticking, fights, etc. My daughter started out playing on boys HS JV. Even without the checking at the Women's College level, it certainly isn't a "prim and proper" sport.

Any physical activity carries a risk of injury, even BALLET. lol Why do you think professional dancers (was for a time) say "Break a leg" before a performance? Good luck.

So parents of daughters taking Dance, better not if they don't want them to possibly be injured?

[Scairp]

35. Not so sure I would get silence

I'm thinking the comments would be flowing freely, and very abusive. People flip out when you attack football. Look at how the so-called experts tried to deny that NFL players were suffering from chronic traumatic encephalopathy. 20 years of false studies trying in vain to prove it wasn't true, 20 years of lies until finally some very brave scientists stood their ground and presented evidence it is true. Even here I saw a comment about how every sport has an element of danger. I agree but football is very unique in that people (men), deliberately hit one another with their heads over and over again. And it starts so young it's disturbing. I believe that most NFL players arrive in the NFL suffering some kind of damage already, from high school and college ball. It cannot be played safely. I know I'm paddling upstream here but I stand by my opinion that football is too dangerous for humans to be engaging in it. And they don't know how much harm they are causing themselves by playing it.

[edgineered]

38. The only people I ever bullied were the bullies.

I'm with you on this one.

[Scairp]

50. TY for your support n/t

[tblue37]

80. See my post #77 above. nt

[Scairp]

81. I actually knew about that

The doctor who did the actual research is the one who worked so hard to get the NFL to admit the damage football does to the brains of players.

[Brickbat]

64. "The people promoting and supporting these activities are also content with our permanent state of

war, abuse of women, racism, and homophobic discrimination."

Whoa -- wait -- you talking to ME?

[ColesCountyDem]

15. If our small, rural district can have a physician at every game, so can others.

Back in September 2006, a young football player collapsed and later died while running the ball at a Friday night football game. Although there were paramedics at the scene who immediately began resuscitation efforts and who transported the kid to the local E.R., there was not a single physician among the crowd of thousands of fans on either side. It was later determined at autopsy that the young man had died from an undiagnosed cardiac problem.

Following this tragedy, our superintendent and our athletic director both reached out to the local medical community for help in preventing such tragedies and in dealing with them in the future, when and if they occurred. As a result of their efforts, the county's medical society unanimously agreed to provide one of their members (or a certified nurse-practitioner) at no cost to be in attendance at every school sporting event. They also began including both EKG's and echo cardiograms as part of the already state-mandated sports physicals.

There's no way of knowing whether or not this young man's life might have been saved had a physician been present, but it is time for us to deal with the the very real possibility of serious injury or death during school-sponsored sporting events.

[Scairp]

53. Okay

As it concerns head injuries, having a doctor on the sidelines at a football game is like putting a Band-Aid on a gunshot wound. It is of no help. The only way to prevent brain damage from football is to not play football.

[ColesCountyDem]

62. I understand your point, but I think you missed mine. n/t

[TRoN33]

23. I collided with smaller player back in 2000...

My left side neck is still hurting because of that. That small DB was pretty fast and strong, I collided into him helmet to helmet first. After game he said he literally could hear my neck pop. (We know each other for while) I am very fortunately that it wasn't much more worse. I wouldn't let my two boys playing football, ever.

[valerief]

24. Football is vile. You want strategy? Play chess. You want teamwork? Play basketball.

There are so many other sports, each with their own risks that don't come close to the danger football poses.

[yeoman6987]

31. Basketball?

Where is your sarc tag? You must know that is a very dangerous sport as well.

[BeyondGeography]

26. "Cutinella is the third tri-state youth to die playing football this school year."

That's just tragic.

Football isn't going away, but more and more parents are steering their kids away from it. It was never my favorite sport, but I used to watch a lot of it and get crazy when my team won big. Now, I have a hard time watching it, mostly because I find it dull compared with other sports. It's also the violence. When you're a kid, you might find it pretty cool to watch people get wiped out on a pass across the middle or a kick return. When you're older, not so much.

[Scairp]

52. No, football isn't going away

At least not in my lifetime. I have hope though that in 100 years football will be nothing but a memory. As more people listen to the science and see that whatever thrill is gotten by playing or watching football is not worth the real cost in disabled and dead former football players.

[oldandhappy]

27. Football has become a gladiator sport.

Gladiators fought to kill each other. Football has become that way -- we do not want to admit it. Just put on your pads and get out there!

[Scairp]

66. Yes

Exactly. It's a blood sport except that they don't kill each other, but do often times end up killing themselves.

[woodsprite]

29. They don't let kids play dodgeball on the playground or in gym anymore

Football is a heck of a lot more damaging than that.

[YarnAddict]

30. Many, many more teenagers are

killed in vehicle accidents. Should we take away teenage driving?

[tsites]

41. Yes

at least to age 18. Give me one good reason younger persons should drive other than parental convenience.

[YarnAddict]

43. Well, for what it's worth

I mostly agree with you.

Efforts are being made--mandating a longer probationary period, more supervised driving, limiting passengers, etc., etc. If the age was raised to 18, I don't know if you could enfore any of those restrictions.

But, yeah. I really hate to see a know-it-all teenager with 5 or so friends in the car speeding down the road, probably texting at the same time.

As I put it when my older son was learning to drive--almost half his lifetime ago: You're hurtling through space, clutching the door handle while knowing that it won't save you if the worst happens, reduced to one-word exclamations (Deer!!! Which he thinks is just an expression of your love for him,) totally at the mercy of a kid whose diapers you were changing, seemingly just a few days earlier.

Sometime during that period I went to the dentist who asked me if I had been clenching my jaw a lot lately. Ha!

[heaven05]

32. My small 2 cents is:

all this compete, compete, destroy your opponent, be better than them is part of the worlds problem. We humans were put into an environment that forced us to compete against each other and against vicious predatory animals lower on the food chain. We have fought against each other, depending on the threat with varying levels of lethality since the beginning of history, recorded history for sure.

Until EVERYONE on this planet says no more to violent competition, spell that war also, for land, resources, first place, best team whatever, sports and the competitive spirit it engenders will be here as a training ground for those men and women who desire it.

Human nature to compete? Not pro, not con....just an opinion. I ran track(quarter mile-mile relay and cross country). Yes I was considered weak by the football jocks. Didn't care. Went out for football in the 9th grade. During practice I got thrown on my head. Yes it hurt badly and I did walk off the field and joined the cross country team. I enjoyed that immensely, only pain was 'the wall'..

[toopers]

34. What most people fail to realize on this board . . .

is that football is the only team sport available to many students. Most basketball programs only take the top 10 players. I am sure soccer and hockey are the same way. Typically, football does not have tryouts for players. If you want to be on the team, you dress out and start practicing (at least at the high school level). So, to tell a high school student to just go out for another sport, there may not be an opportunity to play another organized team sport.

[Kelvin Mace]

36. Everybody should be allowed to play

but then, that would mean "losing" games, something sport-obsessed American's cannot tolerate.

Sorry, high school (and younger) football should be banned.

[MissB]

61. How our school deals with it:

All kids get on a team. Varsity teams are the top athletes and JV teams get all the rest. It may mean that in some cases we have three or four JV teams for a sport. The league knows early on how many JV teams we will have so games aren't a problem.

But it gives the kids a chance to play whatever sport they think they may want. As I noted above, our school cut football completely a few years back. Kids migrated to other sports.

[justiceischeap]

75. I was an athletic kid and young adult and there isn't a sport I played I didn't get hurt in

It's the nature of sports...

When I was a kid I took Judo and at my first tournament watched a teen-ager get his neck broken because the throw went wrong. Instead of landing on his back, his landed on his neck. I had the misfortune of having a kid throw me wrong once and his knee came down on my throat--I thought I was never going to breath again.

From playing baseball/softball at an early age until I was 15, I developed arthritic knees and was told by an orthopedist if I wanted to continue to play, to find a new position. So I did and in my early 20's, playing co-ed softball, ended up with a leg that was broken in 4 places from a bad slide (a guy slide into me at 3rd base hoping to take me out... he did, for 7 months--but I still got the bastard out). I also sustained numerous jammed fingers and a couple of broken fingers and bruises from being hit with the ball.

I took up indoor soccer after softball--I could never play again after the leg breaking incident, I was too skittish on the field. I was a goalie in soccer and ended up with jammed fingers and a soccer slide took me out of one game when the woman slid into my "bad" leg that was broken during softball.

I also took up bike riding for a while until a bad wreck caused a severe road rash.

I feel bad for this kids' family but injuries are part and parcel with all sports not just football.

[Hell Hath No Fury]

83. I played sports in school --

and cannot tell you how many broken bones, sprains, and strains I experienced over the years. The difference, to me, damaging the brain is different than any other type of physical injury, short of severing a spinal cord. Brain injuries can change the very essence of who you are as an individual and how you are able to function in the world on the most basic of levels. There are injuries, and then there are INJURIES. Life is pretty shitty when your thought process is mush and you can't remember much of what transpires in the course of a day. Trust me, I am there right now. I would take 100 broken arms over one brain injury, any day.

[Hell Hath No Fury]

82. TBI and kids --

Having suffered a TBI almost a year ago, I have made myself very aware of the injury and the potential outcome. They are now finding that kids who experienced even a mild TBI can years later have issues with depression stemming from brain damage. We are talking injuries that did not require hospitalization or even cause serious side effects at the time of injury. We're talking about mild concussions, here. I hit my head on the ice while skating -- didn't even bother going to the hospital until a week later when I woke up and couldn't get out of bed because I had vertigo so bad. Classic mild TBI. I am now 10 months out from my injury and am still experiencing significant health issues related to my head injury.

I love a good football game, but I cannot support a sport where brain damage is the possible outcome for a significant number of participants.