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I have no issues with these top football players (or basketball or whatever) taking a soft business degree to go along with their football career. It makes sense that they have some background in dealing with large salaries, etc. Not all of these players are going to make it big in the pro's but even at the base NFL salary, that is a large salary for someone right out of college.
I guess I don't see the problem...it's better than these kids ending up on the street or welfare....
I don't know why you find it offensive. The brain-injury problem in the NFL is well known. I don't know any retired pro athletes. I know some college football players from D1 schools who didn't make it.
The brain injury problem in the NFL is not as prevalent as you suggest. The link below suggests a 3.7% rate of CTE among former NFL players. Elevated risk for illness is not a 100% guarantee that they will be "probably brain-damaged by age 40."
I think it is easy to write an entire group of people off as "probably brain-damaged" when you do not know any. I know quite a few retired NFL players. They are all pretty normal people.
I know almost a dozen. Each and everyone has done very well for themselves after retirement to various levels. These were "old school" pro athletes though and before the massive pay checks. All of the ones I know are not household names outside of MN. But inside of state of MN, they are known to people who follow hockey and football.
Most of the guys I know are coaches or parents at my kids school. I know a handful from youth football. We live close to the Dolphins practice facility and many current/former players live in this area. Most of the former NFL players that I know are very concerned about the education their kids get and send their kids to private school. I don't know why it is hard for some people to understand that while there are some stupid athletes, there are also some stupid non athletes.
Most of the guys I know are coaches or parents at my kids school. I know a handful from youth football. We live close to the Dolphins practice facility and many current/former players live in this area. Most of the former NFL players that I know are very concerned about the education their kids get and send their kids to private school. I don't know why it is hard for some people to understand that while there are some stupid athletes, there are also some stupid non athletes.
I would say that the vast majority of athletes from all sports are above average intelligence..but like everything else, you only hear about the worst cases. The average GPA on my daughter's team is about a 3.8--all STEM majors. Other teams we have been involved with have had similar results. The top students at our high school are ALL athletes. Most college athletes are top students as well. Look at most successful business people, doctors, etc. and they were almost ALL athletes.
Most of the negative comments here concern division-1 football and basketball, not minor sports, not athletes in general, and not lower-division schools. I remember when South Carolina, for example, left the ACC because too many of their football and basketball athletes at that time couldn't meet the conference requirements for SAT scores, which were (if memory serves, which it may not) about 750 combined.
I would say that the vast majority of athletes from all sports are above average intelligence..but like everything else, you only hear about the worst cases. The average GPA on my daughter's team is about a 3.8--all STEM majors. Other teams we have been involved with have had similar results. The top students at our high school are ALL athletes. Most college athletes are top students as well. Look at most successful business people, doctors, etc. and they were almost ALL athletes.
I posted earlier about how female athletes have higher grades than males. Not too surprising, since females in general get higher grades. It hasn't been that long since my own kids were in HS, and I wouldn't say all the top students were athletes, nor would I say all the athletes were top students. My own experience in college, and that of my daughter who went to a D1 college, are otherwise than the above regarding college students, as well.
The changes in the MCAT don't require any new required classes to pass the exam...
But if the test is testing new material students would need those subjects to do well on the exam. Most students would get that background by taking undergrad classes in those subjects.
The brain injury problem in the NFL is not as prevalent as you suggest. The link below suggests a 3.7% rate of CTE among former NFL players. Elevated risk for illness is not a 100% guarantee that they will be "probably brain-damaged by age 40."
I think it is easy to write an entire group of people off as "probably brain-damaged" when you do not know any. I know quite a few retired NFL players. They are all pretty normal people.
Interesting that they could come up with such a precise figure in living individuals, since CTE can only be diagnosed at autopsy. http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/809902
Actually, this is what your link says:
Quote:
To date, there have been no randomized neuropathological studies of CTE in deceased athletes, and as such, there is a selection bias in the cases that have come to autopsy. If one considers the prevalence in deceased professional American football players who died between February 2008 and June 2010, there were 321 known player deaths [14] and the brains of 12 of the 321 underwent postmortem neuropathological examination at Boston University Center for the Study of Traumatic Encephalopathy (BU CSTE). All 12 examined neuropathologically showed evidence of CTE, suggesting an estimated lifetime prevalence rate of at least 3.7%. If one assumes that all deceased players who did not come to autopsy did not have CTE, and that the amount of head trauma in professional football has remained fairly constant over the past 5 decades, a prevalence rate of 3.7% would result.
Nearly 90% of retired football players report aches and pains on a daily basis, and 91% of these attribute their problems to football. Also, 90% report receiving concussions, with 60% reporting two or more. 2/3 who had concussions said they had recurring problems from their concussions.
Last edited by toobusytoday; 09-18-2013 at 06:49 AM..
Interesting that they could come up with such a precise figure in living individuals, since CTE can only be diagnosed at autopsy. http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/809902
Actually, this is what your link says:
To date, there have been no randomized neuropathological studies of CTE in deceased athletes, and as such, there is a selection bias in the cases that have come to autopsy. If one considers the prevalence in deceased professional American football players who died between February 2008 and June 2010, there were 321 known player deaths [14] and the brains of 12 of the 321 underwent postmortem neuropathological examination at Boston University Center for the Study of Traumatic Encephalopathy (BU CSTE). All 12 examined neuropathologically showed evidence of CTE, suggesting an estimated lifetime prevalence rate of at least 3.7%. If one assumes that all deceased players who did not come to autopsy did not have CTE, and that the amount of head trauma in professional football has remained fairly constant over the past 5 decades, a prevalence rate of 3.7% would result.
There is still no reason to believe that the VAST MAJORITY of former football players are brain damaged is there? There is higher risk of brain damage but are talking about 3.7% (I don't have a better number) and 11%, not the VAST MAJORITY.
Last edited by toobusytoday; 09-18-2013 at 06:47 AM..
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