Bobref

For those out there who are Latin-challenged: “The thing speaks for itself.”

So, Fall Camp is underway at ND, like most schools. But that’s not the only big thing going on now on campus. Re-gilding Our Lady.

This would register about 8.5 on the Richter Scale. https://athlonsports.com/college-football/big-ten-expansion-rumors-clemson-florida-state-oregon-washington Big Ten Rumored To Be Adding Four Prominent Schools This Week Washington, Oregon, Florida State and Clemson.

This is a real tough one for me … and I suspect a lot of others. Hard for me to see myself rooting for Khaki Man. But, on the other hand, the NCAA is such an obvious villain.

So, what do you think will be the next chapter in this drama? Not what you want to happen, but what you think will actually take place.

So, it now comes out that there is a “culture of hazing” in Northwestern athletics that goes beyond the football program. A 5th lawsuit has been filed by a former football player. Somebody want to explain how Derrick Gragg still has a job?

Colorado votes to leave the PAC 12 for the Big 12 after this coming season. Would the last one out of the PAC 12 please turn out the lights? https://www.espn.com/college-football/story/_/id/38083687/colorado-board-formalizes-move-pac-12-big-12

Hell has indeed frozen over. Paul Finebaum defending Harbaugh. 🤣😂 https://fanrumor.com/paul-finebaums-shocking-take-on-the-ncaa-vs-jim-harbaugh-war/

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The official report lists it as a “calf strain.” But we all remember Kevin Durant’s calf strain in the playoffs a few years ago.

And that’s why anecdotal evidence that Guardian caps reduce concussions can never be considered conclusive. There is no way to isolate them as a cause, separate from improved coaching technique, greater awareness in players, and other factors.

I have long been an opponent of term limits. I’m a firm believer in Rousseau’s maxim “You get the government you deserve.” Unfortunately, the incumbents have so rigged the system that they have a huge electoral advantage over anyone trying to unseat them. So, reluctantly, I have come around in favor of term limits for Congress, fully realizing some good people may be thrown out with the bath water.

From the data I’ve seen, the real utility of Guardian caps may well lie, not in preventing concussions, but in the repeated microtraumas to the head which many believe can, later in life, lead to chronic traumatic encephalopathy.

And this is a great example of why an independent judiciary, not politically beholden to anyone, is absolutely essential for our checks and balances government to work correctly.

I hate to beat a dead horse here, but all of those citations represent retrospective studies analyzing data generated under uncontrolled conditions, i.e., practices and games. And they all make the leap: “We use Guardian caps and we have fewer concussions. Therefore, Guardian caps are effective in reducing concussions.” This is called a post hoc, propter hac logical fallacy. It’s very common. Since the result is all you’re after, it’s not that important to you what the reason is that you’re experiencing fewer concussions. But if you were a science teacher, and one of your students offered such a conclusion, you’d have to flunk him or her. Let me be clear. I’m not saying Guardian caps don’t work. All I’m saying is the only truly scientific evidence shows they are of little to no benefit.

If it works for you, that’s really all that matters. You’re getting the desired result (eliminating concussions), whatever the cause, so keep on doing what you’re doing. Having said that, I highly doubt that your practices control all the variables that could have an effect on the outcome and, therefore, you cannot draw scientifically valid cause and effect conclusions. And one trainer’s opinion is not the only one who doubts the effectiveness of Guardian caps in preventing concussions. Try the American Academy of Neurology. https://www.aan.com/PressRoom/Home/PressRelease/1347, or, more recently, the Stanford School of Medicine https://scopeblog.stanford.edu/2023/03/28/padded-helmet-cover-shows-little-protection-for-football-players/

This is why anecdotal evidence is insufficient to allow valid conclusions to be drawn. “I can't remember the last concussion we had in practice. I don't think we've had one since we've worn the skull caps.” This is useful information, but not nearly enough to draw any conclusions about cause and effect. The scientific method works … when it is properly used.

I edited my answer to provide some more specific details on how the device works.

The device was called a Q-Collar. The theory was that the collar, by compressing the internal jugular veins in the neck, increased the volume of blood in the brain’s vessels, leaving less room for the brain to slosh around inside the skull. Theoretically, less sloshing = fewer and/or less severe concussions. I don’t recall any scientific data showing it actually worked.

I seem to recall that the “study” was a very small one, certainly too small and without the scientific rigor needed to draw firm conclusions. You and I can speculate all we want about the impact a single play might have had in a game with well over 100 scrimmage plays. But the fact is that the decidedly better team won … decisively.

🤣😂

Since I was on the Merrillville sideline, and not in the end zone, I didn’t see the play well enough to express an opinion at that time. I don’t like to express an opinion without having facts to justify it … unlike a few others on this thread. After I saw the Hudl video, I freely conceded it was the wrong call. Glad that it turned out to be meaningless in the grand scheme of things. One man’s “cowardice” is a more thoughtful man’s “prudence.”

Is there anyone who thinks Merrillville was the better team on the field that night? I haven’t heard anyone say that. The final margin saw the team that had the multi-hour road trip win by 18 pts. I saw both teams multiple times that season. 18 pts. seems about right.

Far better organized and disciplined, which translated to superior execution. Check the penalty and turnover stats. For example, Merrillville had 8 pre-snap penalties … in the first half. If Merrillville gets the TD on the wrong call in the end zone, they would have led 14-7 … in the second period. The outcome would have been the same.

This is what I said: “The back judge let a D1 player run by him, so he was in a poor position to make a call on the end line. He got it wrong.”