Part III of “A Trilogy + 1 “ football and neurodegenerative diseases

The book “Loving Sports” by Jessica Luther and Kavitha A. Davidson states that the Onion each year after the Super Bowl uses shredded concussion Studies as confetti to celebrate the end of another season. It is a “cruel, biting humor that reminds us of our callousness in what we consume.” Football is bad for the brain and body, but no fan cares—only the athletes who suffer from the game care.

Men play football for many complicated reasons, but children play for fun and depend on adults to protect them from the dark side of sports. Boston University study states that “athletes who began playing tackle football before the age of 12 had more behavioral and cognitive problems later in life than those who started playing after 12.”

What to do is the question. Kids love football, so the answer is not to eradicate the sport but to improve the safety features surrounding it. New rules about “legal” contact are allowed in a game, and better equipment that absorbs most of the impact instead of the body is developed.

Jevan Snead and Colt McCoy were two promising quarterback recruits for the Texas Longhorns. Mack Brown was impressed with Jevan’s poise and his ability to move the ball against the first team defense. Mack had a tough decision to make because both were great athletes. Initially, Jevan seemed to be the better of the two and was expected to succeed Vince Young. He had a 5-star rating as a passer and was blessed with height and descent speed. However, things didn’t quite go as planned. Coach Davis changed the offense to suit Colt’s running and passing abilities in the spread offense. Colt worked hard and proved himself to be an excellent player. Jevan, on the other hand, decided to leave the Longhorns and transfer to Ole Miss. As it turned out, the move was beneficial for both quarterbacks. They both went on to become stars for their respective colleges.

Doug Wood shared a link.

October 13 at 8:46 AM ·

Jevan Snead, ex-Longhorn and Ole Miss quarterback dies in Texas at 32

You could see his eyes roll back into his head: Family of late Jevan Snead says concussions changed him

Jevan Snead’s family members believe he suffered from CTE caused by a series of concussions they think he sustained throughout his football career.

Author: Tony Plohetski

Published: 11:47 AM CST January 30, 2020

After Ole Miss, he entered the NFL Draft. But his professional career never took off the way he had dreamed.”He would get a little blue in the fall when football came around,” his sister said. “And the ‘what ifs’ would creep back in.”Jevan Snead returned to Austin and spent much of the past decade here, trying to put football in his past. He had jobs in industries such as commercial real estate and business consulting. He made new friendships and rekindled old ones. Snead died young, and his family believes that concussions in football changed him before his untimely death. But there was something about his days on the field he couldn’t escape. “He didn’t remember any of the games he played,” his sister said. “He didn’t remember a lot of his childhood.”Just sitting around, privately, talking about old games and Ole Miss things, and he would just kind of laugh and kind of be like, ‘I have zero recollection of that,'” Kenyon – Cedar Park High coach and Jevan Snead’s friend – said.RELATED: By 32, Jevan Snead had developed symptoms resembling dementia. Family members believe he suffered from chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) – a condition caused by repeated head trauma. 

The Austin-American Statesman and USA Today co-published a stunning report on the untimely death of Texas Longhorns and Ole Miss Rebels quarterback alum Jevan Snead, who took his own life in September. Snead suffered from CTE. He was just 32 years old. From the Statesman and USA Today’s long-form report:“[Nearly] a decade after the peak of Snead’s football career, his family and close friends believe the sport he so dearly loved unraveled him. By his early 30s, he fought symptoms of dementia, struggled with depression and could scantly recall mundane details of the previous day or even the thrill of bygone victories. Snead’s post-football descent deepens questions about the dangers of a beloved American pastime and what experts say routine head trauma does to the brains of young players weekend after weekend during football season. It has put the issue of chronic traumatic encephalopathy, known as CTE, on center stage for Snead’s loved ones, who have now devoted themselves to educating parents and youths about the dangers and the need for top-line safety gear.

September 21, 2019

I remember watching Jevan Snead when he was competing with Colt McCoy for the QB position & then transferring to Ole Miss. I never realized he took his own life. This is a great example of why targeting & blindside hits have to be enforced the way they are.

Originally published by The Associated Press on September 23, 2019

AUSTIN, Texas — Jevan Snead went to Mississippi to rekindle a promising football career that had stalled at Texas. By the time he left the Rebels, with a year of eligibility remaining, he ranked among the most prolific passers in school history.

Snead was found dead in Austin, Texas, on Saturday night by officers responding to a call about a deceased person near downtown. He was 32.

A police spokeswoman said the death was not considered suspicious. Police and the Travis County medical examiner’s office provided no further information Monday.

Gifted with a strong arm and speed, Snead went to high school in Stephenville, Texas, and became one of the nation’s top recruits. He signed with Texas in 2006, shortly after the Longhorns won the national championship behind quarterback Vince Young.

Snead had previously committed to Florida, and his switch to Texas made it appear he’d be the likely successor to Young, who left the Longhorns for the NFL. But Snead couldn’t win the starting job over Colt McCoy, who would go on to a record career with the Longhorns over the next four seasons.

After limited playing time in 2006, Snead transferred to Ole Miss and found success.

He sat out the 2007 season and started for the Rebels in 2008 and 2009, leading them to Cotton Bowl victories in both seasons. In 2008, Mississippi beat eventual national champion Florida and finished the season on a six-game winning streak.

Snead passed for 5,394 yards and 46 touchdowns at Mississippi. Both marks rank in the top 10 in school history.

“I loved Jevan,” former Mississippi coach Houston Nutt said Monday. “He had a great work ethic and attitude and would do anything for his teammates. He was such a tough guy and had some of his best moments in the biggest games … We had two great years together.”

Snead earned his college degree and skipped his senior season to enter the 2010 NFL draft, but he wasn’t selected. He eventually signed as a free agent with Tampa Bay.

“It didn’t go exactly the way I had hoped, but I’m here now. I’m here to make the best of it,” he told The Associated Press in 2010.

Snead was cut later that year.

“He had his heart set on being an NFL quarterback,” Nutt said. “I thought he would make it if he got in the right team.”

North Carolina coach Mack Brown recruited Snead to Texas. He called him “a great young man, who we enjoyed having as part of our program at Texas before he moved on to Ole Miss.”

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This report included AP reporters Jamie Stengle in Dallas, David Brandt in Phoenix, Aaron Beard in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, and Steve Megargee in Knoxville, Tennessee.

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More AP college football: http://apnews.com/tag/Collegefootball and http://www.twitter.com/AP_Top25

Jim Vertuno, The Associated Press

The Austin-American Statesman and USA Today co-published a stunning report on the untimely death of Texas Longhorns and Ole Miss Rebels quarterback alum Jevan Snead, who took his own life in September. Snead suffered from CTE. He was just 32 years old. From the Statesman and USA Today’s long-form report:“[Nearly] a decade after the peak of Snead’s football career, his family and close friends believe the sport he so dearly loved unraveled him. By his early 30s, he fought symptoms of dementia, struggled with depression, and could scantly recall mundane details of the previous day or even the thrill of bygone victories. Snead’s post-football descent deepens questions about the dangers of a beloved American pastime and what experts say routine head trauma does to the brains of young players weekend after weekend during football season. It has put the issue of chronic traumatic encephalopathy, known as CTE, on center stage for Snead’s loved ones, who have now devoted themselves to educating parents and youths about the dangers and the need for top-line safety gear.