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High schools using 'smart helmets' in football to track head injuries

Four high schools in Burke County are setting a new standard with technology that tell coaches and trainers when players have suffered too many blows.

About 20 percent of teens said they have been diagnosed with at least one concussion, according to a research letter published in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

The two sports with the highest head injury rates are soccer and football, but in Burke County, student-athletes are using new, innovative equipment to stay safe.

The four high schools are setting a new standard with technology inside of football helmets that tell coaches and trainers when players have suffered too many blows.

Jimmy C Draughn High School head football coach Chris Powell embraced the change.

"Football is a violent sport; it really is," Powell said in his first season as Draughn's head coach.

With 37 varsity players, Powell takes every opportunity to preach player safety

"I think if we stay healthy, we can win some ball games this year," said Powell.

Any coach will tell you that you need more than just talent to win. It takes heart, and also, your head.

"We've seen a rise in concussions every year from youth league all the way up to the NFL," Powell said.

That's a big reason why all four Burke County high schools are using Riddell's new SpeedFlex helmet -- a $400 piece of equipment that's changing the way the game is played.

"Throughout the helmet, it has several different sensors on it and at any point in time a kid suffers a big impact, our trainer, Allie Miller, has a monitor and she's alerted to that right away," said Powell.

The coach said the technology registers the magnitude of the collision and collects data on the number of times a teen has been tackled.

"We have to do everything in our power to limit the injuries that take place," Powell said.

Curbing the concussion rate isn't just an emphasis on the gridiron. According to a 2017 study by the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons, soccer players have a higher concussion rate than football players. Female soccer players were found to suffer the most concussions.

"You have to change the way you coach first," said Doug Halliburton, the athletic director at Draughn.

Halliburton said with technology, coaches can change the way they approach practices, which can lead to players staying on the field longer.

According to the Burke County Public Schools, all of the information collected by the helmets on these hard hits and their correlation to concussions will go into a national database to assist with studies on concussions.


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