Randy Smith: Where Is The Game Of Football Headed?

  • Wednesday, November 4, 2015
  • Randy Smith
Randy Smith
Randy Smith

I will admit that I am very torn about writing this column. I'm not talking about cheating, I'm not talking about the number of teams in the college football playoffs, and I'm not talking about coaching tenures at different places. I am talking about the safety of our players on all levels. In the first seven weeks of the 2015 high school season, there were seven deaths nation wide. Seven - one for each week of the season. And today, there is a report of a nine-year-old child who died on the practice field  of his pee-wee football team.

We have all expressed shock and sadness when news like this comes out, but at  the same time, we are all frustrated because none of us know exactly what to do about it.
When I played football, the first helmet I ever had was one without a face mask. When I was given a helmet with a face mask, it was about two sizes too big,  and I injured my neck on more than one occasion making a tackle. I finally stopped playing football because of all the injuries, though I have always loved the game.
 
I really can't imagine life without football. My Saturdays and sometimes my Sundays too, are spent in front of the television set watching football. I still enjoy watching high school games on Friday nights as well, but I cringe every time I see a player who lies on the field in pain long after a play is over. I want them to bounce up and even limp back to the sidelines just so we all know they're okay.
 
When I was a child, we considered anyone who chose not to play football a "chicken." Now, if you choose not to play, you're considered to be smart. Less than 2.5% of all high school players will advance to the NCAA Division one level. You can imagine how miniscule your chances are of being able to play in the National Football League.
 
Officials are becoming more safety conscious. The targeting call which resulted in the ejection of the Tennessee player in the game against Kentucky was a terrible call, but you really can't fault the officials; at least not the ones on the field of play. It's always better to err on the side  of safety.  
 
Honestly, I was always against youth football. Most coaches were fathers who really weren't trained in proper technique. That has gotten better in recent years, and I'm sure better education and training for coaches is the key element. I allowed my son Davey to play football as a sixth grader on his middle school's seventh and eighth grade team. He started every game from middle school all the way through a great career at Boyd-Buchanan. He was the school's first ever Mr. Football Finalist  and signed a scholarship to play at UTC. His career was plagued by one injury after another and after two years and several surgeries, he told me one day that he wanted to be able to walk when he was 30 years old. So, his football career ended.
 
There was sadness, because to play in the NFL was one of goals. But at the same time, I was relieved because the threat of another serious injury was no longer something I needed to worry about. Now that I have a pair of grandsons, I really don't care if either of them ever play a single down of football.   
 
There are still too many serious head and neck injuries as well as players dying on the field of play due  to unknown heart conditions. Football is America's game. Too much money changes hands everyday due to the game of football. Its relevance in our society remains unchallenged, so it's not going away. We simply need to find a way to make the game safer. 

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Randy Smith has been covering sports on radio, television and print for the past 45 years. After leaving WRCB-TV in 2009, he has written two books, and has continued to free-lance as a play-by-play announcer. He is currently teaching Broadcasting at Coahulla Creek High School near Dalton, Ga.

His career has included a 17-year stretch as host of the Kickoff Call In Show on the University of Tennessee’s prestigious Vol Network. He has been a member of the Vol Network staff for thirty years.

He has done play-by-play on ESPN, ESPN II, CSS, and Fox SportSouth, totaling more than 500 games, and served as a well-known sports anchor on Chattanooga Television for more than a quarter-century.

In 2003, he became the first television broadcaster to be inducted into the Greater Chattanooga Area Sports Hall of Fame. Randy and his wife Shelia reside in Hixson. They have two married children, (Christi and Chris Perry; Davey and Alison Smith.) They have four grandchildren, Coleman, Boone, DellaMae and CoraLee.

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