august01

August 2001
Observation

Football practice will never be the same following the Summer of 2001.

   The deaths of University of Florida freshman FB Eraste Autin, Northwestern University senior FS Rashidi Wheeler, and the most publicized, Minnesota Viking and former Ohio State All-American OL Korey Stringer has brought national concerns boiling over the rigors of Summer Training Camp.

   Maybe it's just me, but wouldn't you think that their would have been more deaths in the past when training camps were more "old school?" Back when you were considered a whimp for guzzling a lot of water during practice or drinks like Gatorade were not flowing like a fountain.
                          Could it be that too many players are out of shape? Is the effects of diets
                       rich in preseravatives, drinks laced with creatine, and hours spent playing
                       Playstation catching up with our athletes?

                          Maybe our athletes have become more susceptible to the pressures of
                       always having to be the best and not showing signs of weakness. I think
                       many in Minneapolis and Ohio wish that Korey would have pulled himself
                       out of practice when he was vomitting and struggling to keep up.

   I am not a doctor, but I know that excessive heat, combined with excessive physical exursion, and mixed with asthema is not a welcomed trifecta. It is painful to hear that a promising athlete and exceptional person like Rashidi Wheeler died during summer conditioning. I think Universities should make it mandatory for athletes with certain health conditions must sit out of football workouts when the weather is so oppressive; missing practice and being a wuss beats death.

   As we all mourn the passing of some many football players that have
died this summer, let's change our balls to the wall attitude and stress
the importance to young athletes that they must monitor and listen to
their bodies. Put some pressure on professional and collegiate coaches
and staff to promote self-awarness of the dangers of conditioning in
extreme heat.

   I hope our culture learns from these premature deaths and begins to
stress the importance of life over glory on the gridiron. As an insane college football fan, I
would give up an entire season of Buckeye football to see all these athletes, from high school to the NFL, live another day.

Rashidi Wheeler

Korey Stringer