football – The Sport Journal

American Football and COVID-19: reducing on-field exposures to respiratory particles

Authors: Taylor N. Langon¹, W. Cary Hill², Mark B. Rogers¹, Mike Goforth¹, Robert I. MacCuspie², Stefan M. Duma³, and Matthew S. Hull^2,3

¹Sports Medicine Department, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, USA
²NanoSafe, Inc., Blacksburg, VA, USA
³Institute for Critical Technology and Applied Science (ICTAS), Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, USA

Corresponding Author:
Matthew S. Hull, PhD
325 Stanger Street, Kelly Hall Suite 410
Blacksburg VA, 24061
mahull@vt.edu
540-449-3388

Taylor N. Langon, MS, LAT, ATC is research associate and concussion research coordinator in the Department of Sports Medicine at Virginia Tech. Her primary responsibilities include coordination of concussion research for Virginia Tech Athletics under the NCAA-DoD CARE Consortium.

W. Cary Hill, PhD is currently vice president at NanoSafe, Inc. Cary’s areas of research interest include materials science and engineering, nano-enabled human health and safety technologies and testing strategies, and advanced material processing methods.

Mark B. Rogers, DO, CAQSM, FAAFP, FAOASM, is the chief medical officer at Virginia Tech and an associate professor in the Departments of Family Medicine and Osteopathic Medicine, Discipline of Sports Medicine at the Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine (VCOM). Mark oversees administration and delivery of care to Virginia Tech student athletes.

Mike Goforth, MS, LAT, ATC, is associate athletics director for sports medicine at Virginia Tech. Mike oversees the healthcare needs of all student-athletes and organizes all trainers and doctors while supervising all other healthcare-related services offered at Virginia Tech.

Robert I. MacCuspie, PhD, is director of regulatory and testing services at NanoSafe, Inc. Rob’s areas of research interest include nanotechnology and multifunctional materials, responsible commercialization of advanced technologies, and safe use of nano enabled products.

Stefan M. Duma, PhD, is Harry C. Wyatt Professor, Biomedical Engineering and Mechanics, and Director, Institute for Critical Technology and Applied Science (ICTAS) at Virginia Tech. Stefan’s areas of research interest include injury and impact biomechanics, and innovative methods for measuring the safety of athletes, occupants, and consumers.

Matthew S. Hull, PhD, is research scientist, Institute for Critical Technology and Applied Science (ICTAS), at Virginia Tech, and president/founder of NanoSafe, Inc. Matthew’s areas of research interest include applications and implications of converging technologies, environmental nanotechnology, and occupational health and safety.

American Football and COVID-19: reducing on-field exposures to respiratory particles

ABSTRACT

American football poses unique challenges to protecting the health of athletes both on and off the field. While off-field activities likely pose the greatest risk of COVID-19 transmission among members of the same team, on-field activities may pose transmission risks from one team to another. The findings of this study suggest that, when used in well-ventilated outdoor environments, helmet modifications combining upper and lower visors may help reduce on-field respiratory transmission risks with relatively minimal effects on athletic performance. These findings may offer practical insights to team physicians and athletic trainers as they seek strategies to protect athletes against on-field transmission of COVID-19 in the weeks and months ahead.

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U.S. Sports Academy2021-08-20T11:02:03-05:00September 3rd, 2021|Research, Sports Health & Fitness|Comments Off

College Football’s Bottom-Line Impact: Exploring the Relationship of Football Performance on Athletic Finances for Division I Institutions Today

Authors: Spencer D. Wyld¹ and David C. Wyld²

¹ Walton College of Business, Department of Finance, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR, USA
²Department of Management & Business Administration, Southeastern Louisiana University, Hammond, LA, USA

Corresponding Author:
David C. Wyld, DBA
47042 Scott Drive
Hammond, LA 70401
dwyld@selu.edu
985-789-2127

Spencer D. Wyld, M.B.A., is a doctoral candidate in finance in the Walton College of Business at the University of Arkansas with a focus on the financial aspects of energy, infrastructure, and transportation.

David C. Wyld, D.B.A., serves as the Merritt Professor of Management at Southeastern Louisiana University. His research interests involve the intersection of technology, society, sports and business.

College Football’s Bottom-Line Impact: Exploring the Relationship of Football Performance on Athletic Finances for Division I Institutions Today

ABSTRACT

Purpose: This study examines a heretofore unaddressed area in both sport and economics literature, looking at the relationship between on-the-field college football team performance and the financial performance of university athletic operations overall. Methods: The researchers, building upon prior research employing econometrics to sports analysis, utilized data spanning 2005-2018 for 106 Division I college athletic programs to examine how specific aspects of offensive, defensive, and overall team football performance related to four measures of overall athletic department financial performance (donor contributions, corporate sponsorships, ticket sales, and profit). Results: Based on three separate regression analyses, the study found that while institutional and state control variables were important in explaining overall differences in universities’ athletic department performance in terms of donor contributions, corporate sponsorships and ticket sales, some football-specific factors were found to have significance as well. Overall, college athletic departments that had teams which produced exciting football on the field (with scoring and with a lack of turnovers) were found to be better performing off the field financially in contributing to the overall success of their university’s athletic programs. Conclusions: The present research demonstrates for the first time how – and how much – on-field football team performance can play a role in athletic operations overall from a financial standpoint. The researchers go on to analyze directions – and challenges – for future research in this area, especially considering the implications of the COVID-19 pandemic for college sports operations. Applications in Sport: For athletic departments and athletic administrators, the findings in the present research provide new insights on what donors, sponsors, and fans of their football programs value in terms of on-field performance of their respective university’s football team.

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U.S. Sports Academy2021-08-20T13:12:01-05:00July 23rd, 2021|Research, Sports Management|Comments Off

A phenomenological exploration of constraints for varsity football student-athletes with a sport-related concussion

Authors: Wahid Hamidi¹, Yusuf Hamidi², and George Karlis¹

¹Department of Human Kinetics, University of Ottawa, 125 University pvt., Ottawa, ON, Canada, K1N 1A2
²Department of Nursing, University of Ottawa 125, University pvt., Ottawa, ON, Canada, K1N 1A2

Corresponding Author:
Wahid Hamidi, Ph.D. Candidate
125 University pvt.
Ottawa, ON, Canada
K1N 1A2
Email: whami024@uottawa.ca
Phone: 613-558-8279

Wahid Hamidi is a Ph.D. candidate in the School of Human Kinetics at the University of Ottawa, Canada. His area or research focuses on initiating and maintaining physical activity and exercise behavior, and injury prevention and concussion management in the academic and athletic settings for varsity student-athletes. He is a recipient of the University of Ottawa Admission Scholarship.

Yusuf Hamidi is a Master of Science student in the School of Nursing at the University of Ottawa, Canada. His area of research focuses on problem-solving approaches to learning barriers for undergraduate students using simulated-based learning. He is a recipient of the Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program award.

George Karlis is a Full Professor in the School of Human Kinetics at the University of Ottawa, Canada. His area of research focuses on leisure, society, recreation, sport, and community development.

A phenomenological exploration of constraints for varsity football student-athletes with a sport-related concussion

ABSTRACT

Sports-related concussions are an emergent public health concern due to an increase in mortality and morbidity incident rates. The purpose of this study is to identify constraints in academic and athletic settings for varsity football student-athletes with a sport-related concussion. Twelve varsity football student-athletes from one institution who were diagnosed with a sport-related concussion took part in semi-structured interviews. This study used the social ecological model to identify intrapersonal, interpersonal, and environmental factors. Results suggested that varsity football student-athletes with a sport-related concussion experienced several constraining social ecological factors in the academic and athletic settings. Intrapersonal constraints related to loss of motivation, loss of social identification, stress, anxiety and depression, injury-specific issues, and internal pressure to return. Interpersonal constraints related to insufficient social support, lack of awareness and guidance on concussion knowledge, external pressure to return, and lack of academic support post-concussion. Environmental constraints related to return-to-play and return-to-learn protocols. Findings suggested that there remains a need to address constraining factors in the academic and athletic settings for varsity football student-athletes with a sport-related concussion.

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U.S. Sports Academy2021-05-12T09:35:00-05:00May 14th, 2021|Research, Sports Studies and Sports Psychology|Comments Off

Testing the predictive validity of combine tests among junior elite football players: an 8-yr follow-up

Authors: Pierre-Luc Yao¹, Vincent Huard Pelletier¹, and Jean Lemoyne¹

¹ Department of Human Kinetics, Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières, Trois-Rivières, QC, Canada

Corresponding Author:
Pierre-Luc Yao, PhD
3351 Boulevard des Forges
Trois-Rivières, QC, Canada, G8Z 4M3
Pierre-Luc.Yao@uqtr.ca
819 376-5011, ext. 3793

Pierre-Luc Yao, PhD a lecturer and internship coordinator in the Department of Human Kinetics at Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières in Trois-Rivières, Québec. His research interests include psychometrics, sport retirement impacts and athlete development.

Vincent Huard Pelletier, MSc, PhD(c) is currently a doctoral student at Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières. Vincent research interest include athlete development, physical activity behavior amongst athletes.

Jean Lemoyne is professor of physical education in the Department of Human Kinetics at the Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières. His research interests are practice of sport amongst teens and young adults, performance evaluation in sports, advanced statistics in sports.

Testing the predictive validity of combine tests among junior elite football players: an 8-yr follow-up

ABSTRACT

Purpose: The objective of this study was to assess the relationship and contribution of physical performance test results on the final selection of an elite under-18 football selection camp. Methods: Data were drawn from 2 876 players divided into seven position groups (DB, DL, OL, LB, QB, RB, and WR) collected over an 8-year span. Players’ evaluations included performance tests (10-yd dash, 20-yd dash, 40-yd dash, 20-yd pro agility shuttle, 3-cone drill, broad jump, vertical jump, power max test) and anthropometric measures (height and weight). Student t tests were calculated for selected and non-selected groups for all positions. Results: Mean comparisons showed that for most measures, selected players obtained significantly better results than non-selected players. Linear regression models were generated for all groups, and every position was found to have its own unique prediction model. The best models were those of the DL (R² = 0.222), OL (R² = 0.207) and LB (R² = 0.204), and the overall explained variance for each model was considered low (R² = 0.173). Weight, height and 40-yd dash were the most predominant factors in all models. Conclusion: Individually, selection camp results effectively discriminate between selected and non-selected players; together, however, they explain only a limited part of the final selection for each position. Applications in sport: These results suggest that the predictive capacity of the football combine could be improved in terms of the selection of elite football players.

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U.S. Sports Academy2021-01-07T09:57:43-06:00December 8th, 2020|Research, Sports Health & Fitness|Comments Off

Physical performance of youth football (soccer) players playing in European and National Leagues’ matches

Authors: Emmanouil Smpokos, Antonios Tsikakis, Ricardo Peres, Vangelis Lappas, Pedro Caravela, Paulo Oliveira, Manolis Linardakis and the ‘Olympiacos FC Academy Research Group’

Corresponding Author:
Emmanouil Smpokos
E-mail: msbokos@edu.med.uoc.gr or manosmpok@yahoo.gr (Dr. E. Sbokos)
Phone number: 0030 6945233315
Fax number: 0030 2155308859

Emmanouil Smpokos, PhD/MSc, is the senior physiologist at the Research and Development Department, Olympiacos Academy Football Club, Piraeus, Greece and fitness coach of the U-19; Antonios Tsikakis is the fitness coach at the Department in U-17 ; Ricardo Peres is the Technical Director and the Head coach of the U-19 of Olympiacos FC Academy ; Vangelis Lappas is the head of Goalkeepers’ Department and the Goalkeeper coach of the U-19 team of Olympiacos FC Academy; Pedro Caravela is the Head of the Scouting Department and assistant coach of U-19 team of Olympiacos FC Academy; Paulo Oliveira is assistant coach of Olympiacos FC Academy ; Manolis Linardakis, PhD/MSc, is Biostatistician at Department of Social Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Crete, Heraklion, Greece.

Physical performance of youth football (soccer) players playing in European and National Leagues’ matches

ABSTRACT

The current study assessed the physical performance of youth Greek football (soccer) players between the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) Youth and National Leagues’ matches. This effort was based on 271 measurements of nine physical/motor activities recruited from 25 players with a mean age of 18.4 (±1.2 years) during August 2017 and January 2018 from official-matches of UEFA Youth (n=6) and National Leagues (n=16). Measurements were recruited using Global-Positioning-System Technology-(GPS) and differences were assessed through analysis of covariance. 56.0% of the players were 18.0+ years old, 52.0% were midfielders, and 56.5% of players’ participations were recorded in full time (90.0+ minutes). Between the two competitions of UEFA Youth and National Leagues’ matches, it has been found that there is significant difference only in mean number of decelerations (71.4 vs. 61.7, respectively, p=0.010). High mean levels of total distance-(TD), very high-intensity-speed-running-distance-(VHS), maximal-sprinting-speed-distance-(MS), high-speed-running-(HSR), distance/time-(D/T), sprints, number of accelerations and maximum-velocity-(Vmax) were noticed as well as in UEFA Youth Leagues’ matches but did not differed significantly in relation to counterparts (p>0.05). The researchers observed that youth football players displayed similar efforts in all matches maintaining a high level of physical performance, without separating the matches according to the competition, due to the educational behavior adopted within the football academy of the club.

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U.S. Sports Academy2019-07-24T09:03:50-05:00August 1st, 2019|Research, Sports Health & Fitness|Comments Off