Senior linebacker Tim Handlon and punter Tom Mante were among 620 players who earned a spot in the National Football Foundation's Hampshire Honor Society by combining success on the football field with a grade point average of at least 3.2.
Handlon, a first-year starter, finished as Yale's second-leading tackler in 2009 with 68. He tied for the team lead with three forced fumbles and was second on the squad with two interceptions.
Mante averaged 41.2 yards on 58 punts as a senior and also became the first player in Ivy League history with 50-yard field goals in consecutive games. Mante recently attended minicamp with the Chicago Bears.
http://video.nytimes.com/video/2010/04/05/sports/football/1247467536700/is-dementia-an-occupational-hazard.html?ref=sports#
ReplyDeleteWorkman's Comp , Player safety collide in the courtroom.
You would hope that better equipment could be developed by now.
Years ago S.I. proposed soft cushioning on the outside of the helmet.
Anti spearing rules are a good step but won't help with OL head injuries.
Troubling, Hope Yale can lead the way to
better player brain safety.
April 5, 2010, NYT
Case Will Test N.F.L. Teams’ Liability in Dementia
By ALAN SCHWARZ
VAN NUYS, Calif. — The five paper-clipped sheets that were slipped into a wire basket at the Van Nuys State Office Building looked no different from the other workers’ compensation claims filed by welders and cashiers. But this packet was different: it will almost certainly become a test case in considering National Football League teams’ liability for the dementia experienced by retired players.
The claim was filed by Dr. Eleanor Perfetto on behalf of her husband, Ralph Wenzel, contending that his dementia at 67 is related to his career as an N.F.L. lineman from 1966 to 1973.
California’s workers’ compensation system provides a unique, and relatively unknown, haven for retired professional athletes among the 50 states, allowing hundreds of long-retired veterans each year to file claims for injuries sustained decades before. Players need not have played for California teams or be residents of the state; they had to participate in just one game in the state to be eligible to receive lifetime medical care for their injuries from the teams and their insurance carriers.
About 700 former N.F.L. players are pursuing cases in California, according to state records, with most of them in line to receive routine lump-sum settlements of about $100,000 to $200,000. This virtual assembly line has until now focused on orthopedic injuries, with torn shoulders and ravaged knees obvious casualties of the players’ former workplace.
But Dr. Perfetto’s contention that Mr. Wenzel’s dementia relates to his football employment represents a significant shift, several lawyers involved in the California system said. They estimated the case’s potential value at more than $1 million if it reaches its conclusion, probably in two or three years.......