Heavier high school football players worries health officials

[The Straight Story]

Heavier high school football players worries health officials

CANTON, Ohio (AP) -- High calorie diets, almost year-round weightlifting and more intense competition have made 300-pound high school football players more common in northeast Ohio, bringing concerns from doctors and athletic officials that unhealthy eating patterns and obesity among student-athletes will carry into adulthood.

Fourteen players at Stark County's 20 high schools weigh more than 300 pounds, and 46 players weigh at least 270 pounds. Those dimensions were almost unheard of as recently as the 1970s.

The heaviest Ohio State player weighed 278 pounds 25 years ago, and 20 years ago, no player on the Cleveland Browns weighed as much as 300. But this year's Massillon High School football team, which plays about 50 miles south of Cleveland, has six players who top that mark.

"The game has just evolved," said Vic Whiting, head coach at Canal Fulton Northwest. "The running backs are bigger; the quarterbacks are bigger; everyone is bigger."

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/O/OH_DIET_PREP_FOOTBALL_OHOL-?SITE=WBNSTV&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT

[SoCalDem]

1. It was so much better when ordinary kids played sports

instead of "athletes" who happen to attend school:cry:

[shanti]

18. they're called

student-athletes, and my son is one of them (basketball). it's all done to get college scholarships. there are parents who make this their life's work, kind of like celebrity moms. no, i'm not one, but i have seen a lot of it, and i agree that intermural sports were much simpler back in the day. nowadays, if a kid wants to be at the same level as the kids in other schools, they MUST play competitive sports outside of school to keep up. it's practically a business now.

[SoCalDem]

20. My son was a scholar athlete as well, but he never planned on being a professional

He played for the love of the games and lettered in 4 sports..football, soccer, golf & tennis.. he also graduated summa cum laude.. He's grown up now, and does not regret playing, but his brains have served him well, and will serve him longer than his brawn :)

[shanti]

22. kudos to you, mom!

;) nice job! your son couldn't have gotten there without your assistance!

the point i was trying to make was that the emphasis (at least at my son's hs) is on the academic part of student-athlete. they cannot play if they aren't passing their classes. his school has many fine athletes, but unfortunately most don't play cause they can't cut it academically. so the ones who really want to play make the effort to pass, and the ones who want scholarships go the extra mile to get that GPA to 3.0 and up.

peace

[SoCalDem]

24. It used to be that way.. Sports were the "carrot".. Get good grades &

you could participate..get bad grades & you were OUT.

It's a dangerous game we're playing now.. Kids are relying (and their parents too:grr:) on a child's physical prowess as a ticket to success. ONE INJURY ends it all, and then what?

and even without injuries, the ones who get the fame & fortune are few and far between.. the others end up with nothing..

[The Straight Story]

26. Reminds me of the song 'Palmdale' by afroman

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GreAdeFyW68

[Viva_La_Revolution]

2. When I was a kid, the Grant, NE football team was barred from playing

cause they were all giant corn-fed country boys and other team's players kept getting hurt. Legend says some of the injuries were on purpose. They finally let them start playing again a few years ago.

[Name removed]

3. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Igel]

4. Always?

"At the farm, Gore also formed lifelong friendships and it is the family farm that today Gore still calls home.

"Back at St. Albans, he was captain of the football team and graduated in the middle of his class. Maybe his most enduring achievement at St. Albans was meeting Mary Elizabeth Aitcheson, also known as Tipper."
http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/2000/democracy/gore/stories/gore/

Hmmm ... So Al Gore was a "mutant, thug, and monster." I'd like to know who the intelligent kids were whose chance to live he denied.

:evilgrin:

[tomreedtoon]

6. Well, for one, someone who could have one in 2000 and stopped Bush.

I always wondered what happened to him that made him so dislikeable. Some people thought it was his intellect. Now I know; he was a jock. And his life insured the death of the person who could have won against Bush and prevented the Iraq War.

[Hondadriver]

7. what do you have

against athletes??
What do you have against a person who uses their natural ability to get ahead in life??
And is your anger just against football players, or does it include basketball, wrestling, soccer, baseball, etc...?

FYI My daughter is starting goalie for her high school team, has a 3.2 with mostly AP classes and is planning on becoming a doctor.

[JBoy]

8. "someone who could have one in 2000"

Yeah.

One what?

[tomreedtoon]

17. One bit of compassion for the downtrodden.

Because jocks do all the down-trodding.

[INDIA]

10. You spent most of H.S. stuffed inside a locker, didn't you? lol. n/t

[Hondadriver]

14. LMAO

I was thinking that, but, did not want to actually say it.

[tomreedtoon]

16. No, near-raped by a jock in a deserted hallway.

The sort of crime you can't report because he's a jock, and he's perfect, and the school needs him in the game, and why are you such a hater? I never even tried to mention it to my parents.

And I tell you that anytime jocks get together, something of that kind happens, and the ones who don't actively participate use silence to "support their teammate."

[HughBeaumont]

23. Haa haa, bullying's funny!

:eyes:

[INDIA]

25. Did you read his post before it got deleted?

And you're going to criticize ME? Bullying isn't funny. But when somebody says it's "OK" with them that teenage athletes are killing themselves, I'm going to make fun of them. Rightfully so.

[amandabeech]

12. Didn't Edwards also play football?

Didn't he try to get on the team at Wake Forest, or something like that?

There's that classic photo of John in his football uniform that I think we've all seen.

[KitchenWitch]

11. Be careful not to get paint on yourself with that broad brush.

[devilgrrl]

19. You're just one big ray of sunshine!

Such a pleasant demeanor!

:sarcasm:

[underpants]

5. In '85 by far the biggest player we ever saw was 6'5" 250

and he stood out on the field (not that good though)

Now that guy is about average in some areas.

Diet nutrition and additives are the mostly obvious and therefore most likely causes.

[Elidor]

13. A coach today would tell that kid to bulk up

6'5" and only 250? Hit the weight room, son! You're skin and bones.

[Richard Steele]

9. And the elephant in the living room is still unmentioned?

Can you say "anabolic steroids"?

I knew you could.

[knitter4democracy]

15. That's what I was thinking.

There was a kid on my high school football team we were all positive was using steroids. The roid rages in class were a major clue. I saw one happen just a few feet from me when he vaulted over two rows of desks and dragged my next-door neighbor to the ground in a headlock because my neighbor was looking out the window. The football player thought he'd been staring at him.

Isn't it interesting how so many baseball players are getting thinner all of a sudden? Hmm. I wonder would that could possibly be--not better steroids testing and all, would it?

We need better testing in the high schools.

[SoCalDem]

21. Hey DS.. This is off-topic, but I have a pic for you to work with

I know you'll put it to good use :)