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New Study Suggests CTE Common Among Football Players

By Thomas Scurlock

INDIANAPOLIS, IN - DECEMBER 07: Head coach Urban Meyer of the Ohio State Buckeyes looks down during the Big Ten Conference Championship game against the Michigan State Spartans at Lucas Oil Stadium on December 7, 2013 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
INDIANAPOLIS, IN - DECEMBER 07: Head coach Urban Meyer of the Ohio State Buckeyes looks down during the Big Ten Conference Championship game against the Michigan State Spartans at Lucas Oil Stadium on December 7, 2013 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images) /
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Study shows CTE is a serious problem for football players.

Growing up in central Ohio and attending Capital University, several of my friends played for the legendary coach Don Horton, a journeyman offensive line coach who spent time at Boston College, North Carolina State, Ohio State, New Mexico State, Virginia, Ohio University, Wittenberg, Capital University and Southern Illinois.

If you don’t know Horton, look him up.  His coaching life is extraordinary.

I remember talking to coach Horton in the locker room and weight room thinking this is a larger than life coach making a direct impact on the lives of his players.  He was molding my friends for life off the gridiron more than he was teaching them football fundamentals.

He died in 2016 after battling Parkinson’s disease for many years that was perhaps connected to both CTE and from years of suffering concussions as a player.  His brain was donated to researchers at Boston University’s C.T.E. Center.

Horton has been on my mind the last few days after reading the results of a new study on chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) were published by the Journal of American Medical Association on July 24.

The report is based on the findings by Boston University researcher Dr. Ann McKee who examined the brains of 202 deceased football players, including former NFL, college and high school players.

The results, which are inconclusive and need more testing, are nonetheless shocking as CTE was diagnosed in 87% of 202 former football players.  Perhaps most alarming was CTE was found in 110 of the 111 brains of former NFL players.

Even before this study was conducted and report released, I was torn on this issue.

I love football.  I am as guilty as the next fan, coach, player or corporation celebrating a vicious sport that everyone knows can be detrimental to long-term physical and mental health.

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However, I am concerned that the toll on the players is not worth the price they pay to play.  Should I continue supporting football knowing that I am contributing to its immense success?

I can easily justify my support knowing that the players willingly participate so they understand the risks associated with playing the game.

I can also empathize and wonder if turning a blind eye to the bodily destruction is wrong.

I suspect all of us in the football community know someone directly or indirectly that might be suffering the effects of hits to the head.  Making it personal makes it more human. None of us want to see our friends or family suffer from playing football regardless of whether they did it willingly.

And it is not just football either.  Players in other sports take significant shots to the head. If we put football under the microscope, other contact sports belong there too.

In the end, player safety is most important and the recent changes in this area demonstrate a community that is evolving beyond the tough it out mentality that existed for too long.

Next: Buckeyes on Verge of Three-Year Championship Run

Teaching tackling fundamentals, limiting contact in practice and having a concussion protocol is enough for me to feel comfortable in supporting football.

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