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A video of a youth football drill from last year, with a coach who has since been fired, went viral Tuesday and sparked outrage on social media, with many wondering whether children should be doing something like this.
The 8-second clip shows a young ball carrier going head-to-head with a would-be tackler. The ball carrier lowers his helmet and runs over the defender, and it appeared the two connected with each other’s helmets. The defender hit the ground and was a little shaken up, video shows.
Christopher Duggan – a lawyer for North Carolina's Wesley Chapel Weddington Athletic Association – told USA Today the youth football league first learned about the hit in September 2020 and launched an investigation.
"This drill occurred back in September 2020 on a team with a first year coach in the program," Duggan told the newspaper. "This was addressed immediately with the coach when it happened as this was deemed not an acceptable drill for this age group or the experience level of these players. Subsequent to the coach being removed from his position, there were no other incidents or issues with this team during the remainder of the season."
Duggan added: "The safety of the players is the primary focus and we believe that the immediate and swift actions of removing the coach from his position demonstrates WCWAA’s commitment to that safety."
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Social media users were outraged upon seeing the hit.
Pop Warner told Fox News it was investigating and USA Football also condemned the video.
The team in the video has not been confirmed.
Youth football has been under the national spotlight for the last few years, with studies showing a decline in participation in the game.
Youth participating in football for those between the ages of 6 and 12 declined just over 30% from its peaks in 2008, according to a 2020 Forbes report. Additionally, high school football participation declined just over 5% from peak levels in 2009.
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Concussions and other health-related risks have also been a cause of concern for parents over the last few years. Bloomberg reported in 2014 that half of Americans wouldn’t want their children playing football.