The hits have kept coming this collegiate season for the beleaguered NCAA. First Northwestern University football players began the long march to unionization. Then a wildly entertaining - and probably extremely profitable - basketball tournament came to a close with the Most Outstanding Player calling out the organization and creating further scrutiny on the idea of "scholar-athletes" in the high-revenue sports.
For the most part, the vast majority of college athletics (i.e. the ones that don't make any money) have been able to stay above the fray. However, Neil Henley's negligence lawsuit against Xavier University is highlighting the fact that even these "purer" sports may not always keep the student-athlete's well-being top of mind. To recap, in the suit filed in February, Henley alleges that he suffered multiple head injuries and was rendered unconscious during a team event that included hazing. He was then diagnosed by multiple doctors with a concussion and took an ImPACT test as part of Xavier's concussion protocol, but was not administered a follow-up test before being cleared to play. Henley suffered a second concussion shortly after his return and has been suffering from fairly significant cognitive issues ever since. Henley claims that the team tried to cover up the incident and subsequently lost his scholarship due to "performance issues" - which he claims were caused by the incidents. This is the second lawsuit filed against Xavier by a former athlete this year.
It's hard to predict where the case will go, and Xavier has stated their plans to rigorously defend themselves against these claims. However, no matter what the truth is, the case will certainly continue to cast a light on the issue of head injuries in sports in general and soccer in particular - something the18.com looked at in an article last month. While that conversation is being led by football, the idea of concussion protocols and the role of independent (i.e. not related to the University in any way) medical advisors is relevant in every sport. A belief in personal accountability aside, we have known for a long time that teenagers and college coaches can't be trusted to properly evaluate risk in this area - and we need to find a way to take the decision out of their hands.
