11-12-2014, 12:45 PM
What do neurologists think about the wisdom of 18-22 year old kids banging their heads together to play a game? I wonder if that is playing/will play/has played into the president's decision making process here.
Also, if the decision is made to discontinue the football program, there is an interesting move the president could make. It would not make him any friends on the BOT, but it could turn this story on its head.
If an announcement is made that UAB has decided to drop football, it is made under the guise (or partial guise) of UAB, being a leader in medical research, becoming the very first FBS football program to discontinue playing football based on the growing body of medical research that shows that football is causing permanent brain damage to its players, buildup of tau protein, etc.
He could say that it was a difficult decision, but that in the end he could not, in good conscience, permit that to continue happening to his students... and... (depending on how the relationship with the BOT is going...) call on presidents of other universities to follow suit. That call would almost certainly fall of deaf ears, but UAB football would be gone, and the (at least stated) reason would be science not politics.
Not saying that this scenario will happen, just that this would be an interesting chess move under the circumstances. It is a more difficult position to argue against than fighting political bullies with conflicts of interest, but it would not please said bullies either.
Also, if the decision is made to discontinue the football program, there is an interesting move the president could make. It would not make him any friends on the BOT, but it could turn this story on its head.
If an announcement is made that UAB has decided to drop football, it is made under the guise (or partial guise) of UAB, being a leader in medical research, becoming the very first FBS football program to discontinue playing football based on the growing body of medical research that shows that football is causing permanent brain damage to its players, buildup of tau protein, etc.
He could say that it was a difficult decision, but that in the end he could not, in good conscience, permit that to continue happening to his students... and... (depending on how the relationship with the BOT is going...) call on presidents of other universities to follow suit. That call would almost certainly fall of deaf ears, but UAB football would be gone, and the (at least stated) reason would be science not politics.
Not saying that this scenario will happen, just that this would be an interesting chess move under the circumstances. It is a more difficult position to argue against than fighting political bullies with conflicts of interest, but it would not please said bullies either.
