Giants Host USA Football Safety Program
By Joe Tufaro
NEW YORK GIANTS HOST USA FOOTBALL PROTECTION TOUR EVENT TUESDAY FOR YOUTH FOOTBALL PLAYERS AND PARENTS
USA Football Protection Tour teaches safer tackling, concussion education and helmet fitting
WHAT: USA Football’s 2013 Protection Tour, a program that delivers expert-driven health and safety education
to youth football players, parents and coaches nationwide.
WHO: More than 250 New York-area youth football players and parents
DR. PATRICK KERSEY, USA Football Medical Director and physician for St.Vincent Sports Performance
JIMMY THOMAS, USA Football Master Trainer
ED PASSINO, USA Football Regional Manager
WHERE: MetLife Stadium
1 MetLife Stadium Drive
East Rutherford, NJ 07073
SCHEDULE: 7 to 9:30 p.m., Tuesday, Aug. 20
EVENT COMPONENTS:
Heads Up Tackling. USA Football clinicians teach youth football players and coaches proper tackling fundamentals based on USA Football’s Tackle Progression Model.
Concussion recognition and response. Youth football parents receive an educational seminar on CDC-approved concussion recognition and response protocols. Tuesday’s seminar is sponsored by AIG and will be presented by Dr. Patrick Kersey.
Helmet fitting. Players, parents and coaches participate in an interactive session, led by a Riddell equipment fitting expert, in which they learn to properly fit a young athlete’s helmet.
USA Football Medical Director Dr. Patrick Kersey, Master Trainer Jimmy Thomas
and Regional Manager Ed Passino will be available for media.
Media: Free parking is available in Lot A at MetLife Stadium. Stadium entry is through the Bud Light Gate.
Learning proper tackling fundamentals, concussion education and helmet fitting will be the focus of USA Football’s 2013 Protection Tour event hosted by the NEW YORK GIANTS on Tuesday, Aug. 20. Part of USA Football’s Heads Up FootballSM program, the second annual Protection Tour is composed of free, one-day events this summer in partnership with Riddell and AIG.
Tuesday’s USA Football Protection Tour event at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J., will provide 250 youth players, parents and coaches with instruction on Heads Up Football techniques that teach safer tackling mechanics designed to reduce helmet contact, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) concussion recognition and response protocols and proper helmet fitting.
The San Francisco 49ers, Dallas Cowboys, Chicago Bears and Minnesota Vikings hosted USA Football Protection Tour events earlier this summer. The Protection Tour event hosted by the New York Giants on Tuesday will mark the final Protection Tour event of 2013.
Riddell is USA Football’s official helmet and equipment partner, assisting the independent nonprofit as it awards more than $1 million in equipment grants to youth and high school programs annually. AIG insurers provide participant accident insurance plans for youth leagues nationwide through USA Football. Through its aHead of the Game initiative (www.aig.com/aheadofthegame), which promotes player safety and concussion awareness education, AIG supports USA Football’s Heads Up Football program for a safer game.
About USA Football: USA Football leads the game’s development, inspires participation and ensures a better and safer experience for all youth, high school and other amateur players. The independent nonprofit is the official youth football development partner of the NFL, its 32 teams and the NFL Players Association. USA Football (www.usafootball.com), endowed by the NFL and NFLPA in 2002, provides more than $1 million annually in equipment grants and youth league volunteer background check subsidies.
As a high school football official I applaud the Giants for their part in helping coaches , parents, and players get away from the ESPN fantasy culture and understand how to play the game safely and within the rules.