NFL Hall of Famers Warren Moon and Anthony Munoz, Seattle Seahawks Coach Rocky Seto and Dartmouth Head Coach Buddy Teevens headline a Practice Like Pros football clinic, presented by Safe Kids Worldwide, endorsed by the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF), that will demonstrate progressive techniques to the California high school football community in a four-city tour, February 4-5, 2015.
The tour was devised in reaction to California Assembly Bill 2127, which mandates less contact on high school football practice fields as a matter of state law. The bill was passed by the State Assembly and Senate, signed by Governor Brown in July, 2014, and takes effect January 1, 2015.
“We give thanks and high marks to Safe Kids Worldwide,” said Terry O’Neil, founder/CEO of Practice Like Pros. “Their partnership on this first-in-the-nation tour recognizes an urgent need to reform high school football. Sports Legacy Institute reports that 60% to 75% of head trauma in high school football is suffered in practice, not in games. Our panel will show California coaches – not tell them, show them on video -- non-contact and limited-contact drills that have made top levels of the game safer than high school football.”
Kate Carr, president and CEO of Safe Kids Worldwide, a global nonprofit dedicated to protecting children from preventable injuries, said, “As new and important research becomes available in the area of concussions and the potentially devastating consequences, we now understand that we must be even more vigilant in not only recognizing and treating concussions but preventing them in the first place. Working together with the experts from Practice Like Pros and the California Interscholastic Federation, we can reduce the number of head hits during practice and games and keep players healthy and in the game.”
CIF will issue clinic invitations to high school coaches, athletic directors, team doctors, athletic trainers, principals/headmasters and players’ parents. The tour itinerary:
Wednesday, February 4, 9 a.m. -- Palisades Ballroom, UCLA
Wednesday, February 4, 2 p.m. -- San Diego Hall of Champions, Balboa Park, San Diego
Thursday, February 5, 9 a.m. -- The Theater at Santa Clara Convention Center
Thursday, February 5, 2 p.m. – Wright Hall, UC-Davis
“I have seen the Practice Like Pros clinic,” said Roger Blake, executive director of CIF. “Their proven techniques work at any level, not just the pros, and will help make our game safer. We are grateful to Safe Kids Worldwide and Practice Like Pros, as these premier experts will help educate our CIF football coaches on how to successfully teach the game and maximize time with the players while minimizing full contact. This is a ‘must attend’ for every football coach in California.”
Confirmed panelists are:
Warren Moon, born and raised in Los Angeles, NFL Hall of Famer, nine-time Pro Bowl selection who suffered his first concussion at age 11 on a practice field. Note: Warren will appear on second day of tour in Santa Clara and Davis.
Anthony Munoz, Southern California native who played his high school football in Ontario, Ca., was All-America at USC, then NFL Hall of Fame inductee after a 13-year career with the Cincinnati Bengals. Note: Anthony will appear on first day of tour at UCLA and San Diego.
Rocky Seto, Seattle Seahawks Coach, whose new video, Seahawks Tackling, produced in collaboration with Seattle Head Coach Pete Carroll, is being hailed at all levels of the game,
Buddy Teevens, Dartmouth College Head Coach, whose team tackles only 10 times per year -- on its 10 gamedays -- and has won nine of its last 11 Ivy League games.
Patrick Larimore, UCLA defensive MVP and team captain in 2011, who was forced by multiple concussions to retire from football on the eve of his senior season,
Dr. Christopher C. Giza, Director, UCLA Steve Tisch BrainSPORT Program. Note: Dr. Giza will appear only at the first stop of tour.
Roger Blake, Executive Director, CIF
Terry O’Neil, founder/CEO, Practice Like Pros
In addition, the clinic will feature videotape contributions from NFL Hall of Famer Mike Ditka and ESPN’s Chris Berman.
Safe Kids Worldwide is a global organization dedicated to protect kids from unintentional injuries, the number one cause of death to children in the United States and an epidemic around the world. Throughout the world, almost one million children die of an injury each year, and millions more children are injured in ways that can affect them for a lifetime. See www.safekids.org.