SHS Coaches changing ways of teaching tackling

New safety rules go into effect this high school football season in South Carolina.  The new rules primarily deal with concussions.  Seneca High School Head Football Coach Wayne Green said the new rules have made coaches re-examine how they teach tackling.  “We have actually changed a lot of the ways that we teach tackling and we went and visited with the Hartwell coaching staff, our coaching staff did, and we had already looked at a bunch of videos and we came up with what we felt like was a safe and effective way of tackling.  The game has got to be safe or else parents are not going to let them play.” Coach Green still has concerns about diagnosing concussions. “The only thing that kind of concerns me is I don’t know of a sure fire way to diagnose a concussion and so it really puts the trainers and doctors in a tough situation because they are always going to air on the side of caution and that is the way it should be.  But, it is kind of hard to play this game in August the way it is supposed to be played and not have a headache.” Doctors and trainers are working with area high school football teams to educate them on concussions as well as monitoring student-athletes to ensure they are playing safe.