Health Liability will make or break Football

By 2008, I was impressed American football continued to get away with butchery, even killing. Like me, many former players saw through the football mythology, understood The Spectacle, the power of denial for issues that impacted the health of athletes. Popular sentiment held football as essential for American life, right? Yeah, we older guys heard that. What amazed us in the Post-9/11 world was how America continued to pick up the medical expense for football, to pay for the harm done young players and former athletes in their retirement. There were millions of us. Didn’t America understand mere football profiteers—including the “nonprofit” NCAA and flush athletic departments—continued to pass enormous health-care costs to the public?

Clearly this country didn’t mind footing the bill for stadiums, arenas, and practice facilities, paying billions in construction and renovation along with ongoing maintenance and security. Over the 21^st century, the sport-entertainment domain would cost Americans billions just in loan interest and debt service—for capital borrowed and spent within the first decade. What the public didn’t realize, apparently, was the fact we all paid for football’s ravenous consumption of the vital talent commodity, the bodies of players—and for as long as they lived.

Society paid the lion’s share for football casualties, short-term and long-term, in health-care costs and insurance premiums. Costs compounded annually with hundreds of thousands of fresh injuries, leaving many young people with qualified disablements. Medical insurance for colleges and high schools paid some immediate coverage, but school and athletic officials often shifted costs to the injured individuals and their families. Barring death or catastrophic injury, a player assumed full health-care costs once no longer listed on a school’s game roster, whether by choice, graduation, or other medical condition. Future medical coverage and payments related to football were the individual’s burden.

Every year, the nation’s school districts collectively racked up a fortune in injury costs, and college football churned out its enormous medical expenses, incurred at the thousand or so institutions hosting their blood sport. Even major colleges liked to dodge medical expenses. “In fact, the NCAA, which reaps billions from the efforts of ‘student-athletes,’ somehow maintains its status as a nonprofit organization (with all the accompanying tax loopholes),” Wayne M. Barrett wrote for USA Today Magazine. “Yet, the NCAA doesn’t adequately insure its athletes…”

The NFL was hardly better. Barring catastrophic maiming, retirees were responsible for their medical care until death, and many couldn’t afford adequate coverage, especially among generations predating 1977 in the league. The atrocious physical condition of NFL retirees was thoroughly documented, mass orthopedic injuries, and accumulating research focused on concerns such as concussions. The disability and pension issue of NFL retirees blew up in 2006 and would continue for years, apparently, with public sentiment growing against management and the union.

“The richest sports league in America can’t take care of its own,” observed Gwen Knapp, San Francisco Chronicle, citing the case of 1970s lineman Conrad Dobler, in his 50s and facing a myriad of challenges in health and finances along with his wife, a paralysis victim. The league wasn’t any help. “The way Dobler sees it, the NFL often dumps its medical problems on an unsuspecting public, either through social services or higher insurance costs for a player’s future employer,” Knapp wrote. Dobler said, “You see how they get the money for their stadiums. … They’re always saying, ‘Hey, let’s get the public for some more.’ ” Charlie Krueger, former 49ers lineman, said, “Part of the cost of playing football is physical damage. The NFL has been able to get away with monumental monetary advantages without paying for it.”

Surely the general public understood modern football was dangerous as ever. Every American saw vicious collisions of pro and college up close and repeatedly on video, supported by hard data of sizes, speeds, and casualties. Contact death had not occurred for decades in mass-marketed, entertainment football, the 32 NFL franchises and 70 or so big-name schools—each a valued brand name of American football—but disabling injury was common in the variety of shattered bones and ripped knees, tendons, and shoulders. The tragic cases included brain traumas and crippling paralysis, with the latter much less frequent but more publicized. “The health consequences of high-impact sports is not just an issue for old timers. Increasing numbers of present-day players are reckoning with the short- and long-term consequences of concussions and cranial trauma,” wrote Dave Zirin, cultural critic on sport, for The Nation. “This is partly because there is far more research and awareness about concussive injury. But the game is changing: Players today are bigger, stronger and faster then even ten years ago.”

The reality of football destruction and death had been quashed, minimized, disinfected to the extent it rolled by out of sight save for the relative few witnesses to genuine horror. Victims of serious injury and their families endured terrible tragedy of American football. If the game indeed taught positive values to untold young athletes, it should have, because the other side was much darker than commonly portrayed.

The game outright killed 1,006 players during the 77 years through 2007, for example, including at least one girl, and led to deaths of 683 more players, including of heatstroke and cardiac arrest, according to statistics of the National Center for Catastrophic Sports Injury Research, University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill. In addition, the center reported 278 catastrophic incidents classified as cervical-cord injuries, affecting the region of spinal column to brain. Many victims did not recover fully from damages in motor and neural function, and I could vouch for other types of paralysis the center didn’t track. In middle age my right foot remained 90 percent “dropped” with paralysis of a nerve shredded at the knee in 1982, sustained playing college football. In the same season, the Catastrophic Injury Center logged 11 cases of cervical-cord injury.

Raw data, stark as it may be, was not the full story, though. To paraphrase the butcher Joseph Stalin, from his staff briefing on fine propaganda, the public viewed 5,000 deaths as a statistic but one victim’s personal story as tragic. Maybe that was why the media routinely reduced football deaths to the few lines of a brief report, and the game and fans demanded it that way.

When I was a newspaper sportswriter, I penned a column titled “A Player Dies Quietly in Football America,” recounting a college player’s collapse in Georgia. The local prep coach complained to my editor. He said I made it difficult to recruit kids to play, and he was correct. I liked the coach, even understood him to a point. He certainly took as much precaution for the heat as possible with his team, while also properly conditioning players for the trying task of competing. My point was the game could never be safe enough, regardless of anyone’s good intent, and I was a messenger, not a recruiter. Elsewhere, I was agape in seeing researchers, doctors, claim the game could be made “safe” through rules enforcement or technology. Impossible!

Regarding football horror stories, the Stalin rule applied: More detail on victims altered the response. Even the cold, calculated annual report of the Catastrophic Injury Center could chill the blood with its additional notes on cases nationwide. The research encompassed all types of football, pro, college, prep, sandlot, and youth leagues, with financial grants and statistics contributed by the NCAA, the National Federation of State High School Associations, and the American Football Coaches Association. The 2007 report covered football involving about 1.8 million participants, including 1.5 million at junior and senior highs and 75,000 in college football.

In 2007 there were four direct deaths in football, nine indirect deaths, and eight injuries of the cervical cord. Less impersonal details were found in the report’s case descriptions, including the following on non-fatal injuries:

“A 17-year-old high school football player was injured… while being tackled in a game. The helmet of the tackler hit the ball carrier under the facemask and drove his head back. He had a fracture of CV-5 and had surgery… At the present time recovery is incomplete. A 16-year-old… had a collision with a teammate while rushing the passer. He is quadriplegic. A 17-year-old… was hit in the head by the knee of the ball carrier. He was [5-6] and weighed 140 lbs. Recovery is incomplete. A 16-year-old… was a ball carrier fighting for extra yards when he was hit by another tackler from the front. He had surgery and recovery is incomplete. He is presently in a rehabilitation center. … A 16-year-old high school football player was injured… Contact was head-to-head with the tackler. He collapsed after the game… The injury was subdural hematoma with surgery and incomplete recovery. A 17-year-old… was involved in a number of hits during the game and it was not possible to say which hit caused the injury… diagnosed as a bleed in the brain. The player had surgery and was in rehabilitation.”

The football year’s four direct fatalities involved collisions, per the definition, and death was not immediate in three cases. Indirect deaths involved various circumstances attributed to football. Case reports by the Catastrophic Injury Center included the following:

“A 14-year-old middle school football player was injured while tackling… was diagnosed with a brain injury. After two weeks in a medically induced coma he died… An 18-year-old high school senior [6-5, 275]… was being tackled at the time of the injury. Contact was made by the helmet of the tackler. Injury was diagnosed as internal, with damage to the spleen and small intestine. The athlete died [a month after injury]. A 13-year-old… was injured while being tackled from behind with a blow to the head. The injury was diagnosed as an acute subdural hematoma. … The athlete died [a day later]. A 25-year-old World Indoor Football League football player was injured… a helmet-to-helmet tackle. He was [6-1] and weighed 180 lbs. … Injury was diagnosed as a brain injury and he was dead on arrival at the hospital. … A 17-year-old collapsed at practice… and died [a week later]. He was running laps at the time and cause of death was heart related. He did not have a physical exam before the season. A 16-year-old… received blunt trauma to the knee during practice… He died of a blood clot that broke loose to the lungs, [a] “pulmonary thrombi emboli.” A 17-year-old… collapsed at practice… and died at the hospital the same day. Cause of death was diagnosed as heatstroke. The player was [6-4] and 290 lbs., and the temperature was 100 degrees. … A 19-year-old college freshman football player collapsed and died during a team workout… He was [5-11] and weighed 210 lbs. He was working with weights at the time, and cause of death was heart related.”

Beyond cases of direct and indirect fatalities, at least three more deaths were reported around football in 2007: a 14-year-old with a torn aorta; a 17-year-old who died in his sleep; and a teen player who died playing touch football following a team lifting session, caused by an aortic aneurysm, according to the Catastrophic Injury Center.

I saw several problems affecting the future business of football, including for the vaunted NFL, whose fans consumed anything, and I wasn’t alone. “The fact that the public may not care isn’t the issue and doesn’t change the facts and indications that the NFL is sitting on a powder keg,” observed Sal Marinello, BlogCritics.org columnist and former college football player.

Franchises and doctors had already been sued for abuse of pain-killing pills and shots, a well-publicized discussion for 40 years. In 2008, Patriots offensive tackle Nicholas Kaczur was charged with misdemeanor possession of oxycodone pills, part of a larger investigation, and Giants tackle Shane Olivea said he kicked a painkiller habit after intervention by loved ones. “Seeing my family [gathered] in my living room… seeing how hurt they were and the pain I had caused them was pretty humbling and gut wrenching,” Olivea told reporters. Hero quarterback Brett Favre was documented with a painkiller addiction back in the 1990s, and I thought it impossible for him to continue through the next decade without the stuff. “I don’t think anyone comes with ‘no baggage,’ ” Favre said in 2006. “And I’d be the first to say that I had my share of troubles and addictions…” The next season, Favre endured shoulder and elbow injuries in his throwing arm, saying he could “shoot up and still play.”

The plague of brain concussions was a certifiable legal nightmare for the NFL, given the union’s court defeat by the family of the late Mike Webster. The estate finally prevailed at the U.S. Court of Appeals, Fourth Circuit, a 3-0 decision in December 2006, and collected about $2 million in retroactive disability benefits, interest, and costs. There were more Mike Websters out there. Battered bodies were evident among retirees, garishly displayed at team reunions and other public gatherings, when young and middle-aged men hobbled and jerked about on replacement parts. A few guys motored by wheelchair. “It’s an orthopedic surgeon’s dream,” union official Miki Yaras-Davis said of such a sight in 1995. “[Retirees] all have the crab-like walk, and it’s hard to believe they were once these feared gladiators. Forty-year-old players are having the same problems as 80-year-old men.” In 2002, veteran Raiders lineman Trace Armstrong met many retirees as president of the players association, “and some of these guys don’t look so good,” he said. “Young men, onetime great athletes, but they don’t move around so well.” Armstrong, himself facing retirement, had 16 surgeries by his latter 30s.

The obesity issue of players loomed for the game as a whole. There were already lawsuits, notably for NFL heatstroke fatality Korey Stringer, the enormous Vikings tackle who succumbed in training camp. Research doctors and other medical experts collectively reviewed thousands of football specimens, teens to middle-aged men, and generally concluded risks were apparent, including for cardiac disease leading to complications like enlarged heart syndrome.

Heatstroke continued to kill in football, mainly kids, tragedy unabated despite the game’s horrific record of four deaths in a week during August 2001, including Stringer. Everyone then in football vowed to forever avoid this completely preventable condition, but the promise fell broken. In 2006 five players died of heatstroke, for example, ages 11-17. For cardiac death, meanwhile, researchers corroborated alarming rates of fatalities among athletes, all ages and types.

Grotesquely large physiques of modern football were widely associated with anabolic substances and danger, not surprisingly. Eyesight and common sense constituted enough consideration for the assumption. “Evolved Reality is this: It’s starting to feel like a significant segment of the NFL is on drugs,” observed Chuck Klosterman for ESPN The Magazine. A Chicago physician, Dr. Terry Simpson, saw evidence of malpractice in examining and treating former players of the NFL, damage left by cortisone and xylocaine injections of the past, and he expected disablement rates to increase because of muscle doping and sizes. “Steroids contribute to the overall injury patterns,” Simpson told The New York Daily News.

Active players acted oblivious to muscle drugs, befuddling outsiders as intended. Despite the evidence of a doping epidemic, players would outright deny it, and in turn the public wondered why so many would unite in a flimsy lie. Many retirees were prone to acknowledging a problem, but they didn’t say much. “The guys that we knew… were doing it, we would never say anything about them,” said Bruce Laird, former safety. “It’s just locker room stuff.” Self-acknowledged steroid user Bill Curry, who juiced decades ago as an NFL lineman, believed players and coaches were ashamed of drug abuse. “It’s hard to come clean on it if you did if for a long time. It’s easy to come clean in my little story [of brief use]. That’s like a Sunday School story,” Curry said, adding “no coach can look me in the eye and say, ‘Well, gee, I didn’t know [a player] was doing it.’ ” Curry noted monetary concerns hindered open talk. “Sadly, as in the case of most human experience, it’s going to take maybe a series of disasters that are obvious. … We don’t do anything until there’s a disaster, until everybody feels it. And when everybody feels it, then we’ll do something that’s very, very serious, but not until.”

Money was definitely the impetus for denial by many juicers past and present, along with the league and union administration, according to numerous insiders. Silence or denial was “a self-interest thing,” said former NFL linebacker David Meggyesy, who didn’t use steroids as a player but knew juicers as a union official. “Look, you go to apply for a medical claim or disability, and you can be denied this claim because you used steroids. You know how insurance companies are. For Christ’s sake, any reason you can provide them to not cover you…” In 2004, Giants center Shaun O’Hara echoed Meggyesy as he denied steroid use to inquiring media. “How can we ask someone to insure us if we’re doing something harmful to ourselves? The insurance companies would never do that,” O’Hara said.

Insurance carriers in the U.S. market struggled mightily in the 2000s, with liquid capital always subject to wipeout by global events such as terrorism, war, natural disaster, and collapsing economy. American football felt the heat too, long overdue, despite the nationalistic sport’s appeal to the insurance industry as sort of a loss leader. Football could still acquire coverage for medical and liability, but premium and deductible rates skyrocketed for sports overall during the decade of disaster, as they should have. American football was increasingly exposed and defeated in civil suits—or predisposed to settle—for its inherent hazards and casualties.

Coaches, trainers, and other personnel gambled on, despite knowing they stood legally vulnerable in potential injury situations involving athletes and even fans—especially at the prep and college levels. On the matter of concussions, for example, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell suggested football’s lower levels had more to worry about, and he was correct. For sheer numbers of football participants and lack of resources, fertile litigious conditions existed over unavoidable shortcomings at school districts and colleges, such as inadequate health screening and medical support, and insiders knew it. Kids understood it. Injury “waivers” for football, signed by parents and athletes, were mostly legal ploy anywhere in America. What taxpayers didn’t get, they paid too, especially in the event of an athlete’s death or catastrophic injury, which meant a huge deductible, as high as six figures, and more costs not covered by insurance.

The insurance industry closely monitored the issue of PEDs in American football and had since the 1980s, when carriers began dropping the sport for steroid abuse and injuries reported by media. In 2007, as Texas mandated worthless $6 million random testing for prep sports, one high school required parents of football players to sign a “Steroid Dangers Acknowledgment form.”

Moving forward in the young century, the institutions of insurance, health care, and education were all cash-strapped while the legal peril grew in litigious America. Already, insurers had dropped coverage on numerous hazardous activities at schools and colleges, from rope climbing in PE class to pyramid building by cheerleaders. Football had slid by thus far, likely since it was institutionalized in schools and culture, but this was a money issue, after all. Forces were converging beyond the game’s control, even the all-powerful NFL’s, and it was anyone’s mistake to presume football could roll forward in its present form.

Football reform lay dead ahead for absurd injury and illness—and financial costs—requiring the reversing of drug use and player sizes, particularly for colleges and high schools. The monetary costs alone would mandate change, if not real concern for young people, and the courts, insurance, and health care would carry it out, if football wouldn’t of its own volition. Approaching 2010 in America, with a scary, tough world coming down to roost atop our heads, deflating our formerly insulated cocoon of consumerism and pleasure, the sane choices to make about football began with the athletes, coaches, and officials.

References

Note: The author files many items beyond works cited for this conclusion passage of book
Adderall. (2008, April 10). Adderall: Questionable benefit, definite risk. New York Daily News [Online].
Adler, E. (2007, April 8). Break grip of obesity, youngsters are urged. Kansas City Star, p. A1.
Alanis, M. (2006, June 3). Drug tests catch few students; none are positive for steroids. Dallas Morning News [Online].
Almond, E. (1996, September 29). A world of hurt. Seattle Times, p. D1.
Alzado, L. (1991, July 3). Television interview with host Roy Firestone [transcript]. ESPN.
Alzado, L. (1991, July 8). ‘I’m sick and I’m scared.’ Sports Illustrated, p. 20.
Anderson, D. (1986, November 30). X factor in N.F.L. violence. New York Times, p. 5—1.
Anderson, R. (2005, August 25). Expanding concerns. Roanoke Times [Online].
Araton, H. (2001, August 2). Culture of extremes and extreme heat collide. New York Times [Online].
Atlas, D. (2008, February 5). Teens using steroids cheat themselves and their health. Dallas Morning News [Online].
Avila, J., Tribolet, B., Pearle, L., & Michels, S. (2008, February 20). Girls and steroids: Anything to be thin. ABC News [Online].
Babwin, D. (2001, August 8). Wheeler’s parents want answers. The Associated Press [Online].
Baker, M. (2008, July 24). High school coaches blames steroids on commercial gyms and personal trainers. Mesomorphosis.com [Online].
Baker, S. (2007, February 13). LTE: High school athletes. Kansas City Star, p. B10.
Ban Urged. (2008, March 29). FDA, DEA urged to ban andro sales. The Associated Press [Online].
Barnas, J. (2005, March 23). CMU duo research drugs’ allure, danger. Detroit Free Press [Online].
Barnes, D. (2006, January 28). Labs one step behind designer steroids that pop in, out of use. Edmonton Journal [Online].
Barnidge, N. (2004, December 9). SSU football program under NCAA investigation. Savannah Morning News [Online].
Barnidge, N. (2004, December 10). SSU president acknowledges NCAA investigation for alleged steroid use. Savannah Morning News [Online].
Barnidge, N. (2004, December 11). SSU athletics, a program divided. Savannah Morning News [Online].
Barnidge, N. (2005, February 10). SSU releases list of football players who asked to be released from their scholarships. Savannah Morning News [Online].
Barrett, W.M. (1998, January). Greed and hypocrisy in a land of plenty. USA Today Magazine, p. 69.
Bavley, A. (1998, June 10). Athletes missing thorough screening. Kansas City Star, p. C1.
Be Sure. (2006, December 25). How can I be sure what i’m getting is real? forums.steroid.com.
Begley, I. (2008, June 28). News examines relationship between steroids and heart-related deaths. New York Daily News [Online].
Behar, M. (2008, August 5). Will gene therapy destroy sports? Discover Magazine [Online].
Bell, J., & Corbett, J. (2008, March 28). Dark days ahead? NFL meetings set serious tone. USA Today [Online].
Bell, T. (2006, October 8). IHSA drug tests likely this year. Chicago Sun-Times [Online].
Benjamin, A. (2006, June 9). Experts concerned HGH is a growing problem. Boston Globe [Online].
Berkow, I. (2001, August 5). In plain talk, there is an explanation for Stringer’s death. New York Times [Online].
Bhasin, S.; Storer, T.W.; Berman, N.; Callegari, C.; Clevenger, B.; Phillips, J.; Bunnell, T.J.; Tricker, R. ; Shirazi, A.; & Casaburi, R. (1996). The effects of supraphysiological doses of testosterone on muscle size and strength in normal men. New England Journal of Medicine, p. 1.
Bianchi, M. (2006, September 11). NFL fans prove short memories help in long run. Orlando Sentinel [Online].
Bigger Better. (1996, October 19). Bigger is better. Kansas City Star, p. D5.
Bigger, Stronger. (2007, February 7). Bigger, stronger faster: Recruiting pressure drives some to steroids. KXAN-TV [Online].
Biggs, Michigan. (2008, August 7). Rondell Biggs, steroids and Michigan. Ann Arbor News [Online].
Bondy, S. (2007, October 3). Football’s weight limits preventing Lodi boy from playing games he loves. Herald News [Online].
Bonk, T. (2005, August 23). Doctor: NFL exams far exceed standards. Los Angeles Times [Online].
Bowman, L. (2005, October 26). Sales of human growth hormone widespread, study finds. Scripps Howard News Service [Online].
Bowman, L. (2006, January 31). Living large: Why it’s not necessarily good for us. Scripps Howard News Service [Online].
Buckley, T. (1988, August 30). Insurance at a premium. St. Petersburg Times, p. Football-4.
Buckley, T. (1988, September 3). Insurance becomes big part of the game in Florida football. St. Petersburg Times, p. City Times-6.
Bulked Up. (2005, November 30). Bulking up: The dope on steroids. Free Lance-Star [Online].
Burned Records. (2003, July 19). Northwestern doctor burned medical records. Kansas City Star, p. D2.
Burwell, B. (2007, February 2). NFL’s cold-hearted stance regarding its vets is deplorable. St. Louis Post-Dispatch [Online].
Cane, M. (2005, October 20). High school football players bigger than ever. Everett Herald [Online].
Cantu, R. (2007, April 20). Athletes, administrators on steroid testing bill: Where’s the juice? Austin American-Statesman [Online].
Caplan, A. (2005, August 14). Why does it matter how an athlete wins? News Journal [Online].
Cardiac Deaths. (2001, March 2). Cardiac deaths up among young. Kansas City Star, p. A7.
Carey, B. (2002, August 3). Doctors debate risks of doping, but no one has enough data to really know. Los Angeles Times [in Montreal Gazette, p. G12].
Carpenter, L. (2007, June 20). Compromise reigns at summit on concussions. Washington Post, p. E1.
Casey, T. (2003, November 13). Weighing game: Prep football players literally becoming big men on campus, with more tipping the scales near 300 pounds. Sacramento Bee, p. C1.
Catastrophic Medical. (2008, August). Catastrophic medical & disability insurance plan. Missouri State High School Activities Association Journal, p. 6.
Caucus on International Narcotics Control, U.S. Senate. (2004, July 13). The abuse of anabolic substances and their precursors by adolescent and amateur athletes [S. Hrg. No. 108-814]. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office.
Cheng, M. (2008, November 13). Rates of paranoia slowly increasing. Kansas City Star, p. A7.
Chest Kill. (1998, June 18). Light blow to chest an kill, study finds. Kansas City Star, p. A7.
Clay, D. (2006, July 4). Teen son’s death leads his parents to warn of steroids. NewsOk.com [Online].
Coakley, E. (2005, October 1). UNC center helps ex-athletes cope with aches and pains. Herald-Sun [Online].
Coffey, W. (2005, April 24). Hand that rocked the cradle. New York Daily News [Online].
Coffey, W. (2007, March 25). A body to die for. New York Daily News [Online].
Coffey, W. (2007, December 16). Teens’ big worry: For high school athletes, steroids still the rage. New York Daily News [Online].
Commissioner Goodell. (2008, February 1). NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, Super Bowl XLII news conference, Phoenix, Arizona. 49ers.com [Online].
Committee on Energy and Commerce, U.S. House of Representatives. (2005, March 10). Steroid in sports: Cheating the system and gambling your health (H. Hrg. No. 109-65). Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office.
Committee on Government Reform, U.S. House of Representatives. (2005, March 17). Restoring faith in America’s pastime: Evaluating Major League Baseball’s efforts to eradicate steroid use. (Serial No. 109-21). Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office.
Committee on Government Reform, U.S. House of Representatives. (2005, April 27). Steroid Use in Sports, Part II: Examining the National Football League’s Policy on Anabolic Steroids and Related Substances (Serial No. 109-21). Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office.
Committee on the Judiciary, U.S. House of Representatives. (2004, July 20). Good Samaritan Volunteer Firefighter Assistance Act of 2003, the Nonprofit Athletic Organization Protection Act of 2003, and the Volunteer Pilot Organization Protection Act. (Serial No. 108-107). Washington, DC: Committee on the Judiciary.
Concussions Unreported. (2004, June 16). Concussions in college often go unreported. Kansas City Star, p. D2.
Condotta, B. (2005, January 22). UW head trainer on leave for falsifying medical records. Seattle Times, p. D5.
Connolly, C. (2008, November 30). U.S. ‘Not getting what we pay for’: Many experts say health-care systems inefficient, wasteful. Washington Post, p. A1.
Cormier, A. (2006, October 1). Simms’ case highlights NFL doctors’ dilemma. Sarasota Herald Tribune [Online].
Cote, G. (2006, August 30). No question Scott should be honored. Miami Herald [Online].
Couch, G. (2001, August 24). Experts foresee legal wrangling. Chicago Sun-Times [Online].
Couch, G. (2005, August 22). Sports culture becoming something that isn’t healthy. Chicago Sun-Times [Online].
Courson, S. (2004). Childhood obesity: An ominous foreshadow of the future? Farmington, PA.
Courson, S. (2005, March 7). Interview with author, Farmington, PA.
Courson, S. (2005, March 20). Telephone interview with author.
Courson, S. (2005, March 27). Telephone interview with author.
Courson, S. (2005, April 3). Telephone interview with author.
Courson, S. (2005, May 1). Telephone interview with author.
Courson, S. (2005, May 8). Telephone interview with author.
Courson, S. (2005, May 11). Telephone interview with author.
Courson, S. (2005, May 12). E-mail correspondence to author.
Courson, S. (2005, May 18). E-mail correspondence to author.
Courson, S. (2005, May 23). Telephone interview with author.
Courson, S. (2005, May 26). Telephone interview with author.
Courson, S. (2005, June 7). Telephone interview with author.
Courson, S. (2005, June 22). Telephone interview with author.
Courson, S. (2005, June 30). Telephone interview with author.
Courson, S. (2005, July 8). Super-size me, please. Non-published media commentary.
Courson, S. (2005, July 10). E-mail correspondence to author.
Courson, S. (2005, July 17). E-mail correspondence to author.
Courson, S. (2005, July 20). Correspondence to former teammate, non-forwarded.
Courson, S. (2005, November 1). Telephone interview with author.
Creglow, Z. (2008, March 24). Drug tests coming for athletes. Galesburg Register-Mail [Online].
Curry, B. (2008, June 7). Telephone interview with author.
Cyphers, L. (2008, October 6). Can athletes prove they’re clean? In a word, no. ESPN The Magazine, p. 18.
Dahlberg, T. (2008, October 28). Steroids in the NFL, but no steroid scandals. The Associated Press [Online].
Dangerous Football? (2007, August 17). How dangerous is high school football? ScienceDaily.com [Online].
Davis, C. (2006, September 3). LTE: Steroid users aren’t victims. Kansas City Star, p. C3.
Davis, E. (2007, April 24). Illegal hormone use remains undetectable. Collegian [Online].
Davis, M.E. (2001, August 10). LTE: Summer heat can be deadly. St. Louis Post-Dispatch [Online].
de Jong, A. (2006, May 9). Money drives college athletics. Daily Bruin [Online].
DeArmond, M. (2007, March 14). Life eclipses football at MU. Kansas City Star, p. D6.
Death Lesson. (2005, August 22). Player’s death is lesson for NFL. Central Florida Future [Online].
Debunking Myths. (2007, March 21). Debunking some health myths. Kansas City Star, p. F12.
Deny Truth. (2001, August 5). Why NFL, fans deny the truth behind death. St. Louis Post-Dispatch [Online].
Donnellon, S. (2005, May 1). Steroid use? Fat chance. Philadelphia Daily News [Online].
Donnellon, S. (2005, August 23). What’s so wrong if the NFL got smaller? Philadelphia Daily News [Online].
Dorney, K. (2005, October 6). Mandatory steroid testing for all. Scout.com [Online].
Dorsey, V.L. (1990, January 31). Prep coaches worry about alcohol. USA Today, p. 1C.
Dunham, W. (1987, January 31). NFL injuries rise, insurers get tough. United Press International [Online].
Dvorchak, R. (2005, April 3). $135 million jury award forces new look at high cost of sports and drinking. Pittsburgh Post-Gazette [Online].
Dvorchak, R. (2005, October 3). Steroids in sports: Officials bungled steroid regulation from the start. Pittsburgh Post-Gazette [Online].
Dvorchak, R. (2005, October 4). Steroids in sports: Keeping steroids out of sports no easy task. Pittsburgh Post-Gazette [Online].
Dvorchak, R. (2005, October 5). Steroids in sports: Good uses for steroids overshadowed by bad. Pittsburgh Post-Gazette [Online].
Dwyre, B. (2001, October 26). A special report on medical precautions in high school football: How safe is it? Los Angeles Times, p. 4—1.
Easterbrook, G. (2007, August 13). Numbing problem in the NFL. ESPN.com [Online].
Edison, J. (2005, August 11). Collets continue crusade against performance-enhancing drugs. Pioneer Press [Online].
Excessive Weight. (2005, December 5). Excessive weight loss, gain dangerous for young athletes. Kansas City Star, p. A9.
Ex-USF Player. (2007, February 28). Ex-USF player dies from injury. Sun-Sentinel [Online].
Family Mourns. (2008, May 20). Family mourns as cause of death remains unknown. KOLN/KGIN-TV [Online].
Farmer, S., & Wharton, D. (2002, January 29). Weight matters. Los Angeles Times, p. 4—1.
Farmer, S., & Wharton, D. (2007, February 9). Bullet proof. Los Angeles Times [Online].
Farner, K. (2007, February 10). Performance enhancers not just a pro sports problem. Independent Mail [Online].
Female Athletes. (2005, July 5). Girls’ game: Young female athletes do steroids, too. Pittsburgh Post-Gazette [Online].
Fermoso, J. (2008, October 22). What Facebook and steroid use have in common. Wired [Online].
Fernandez, B. (2008, January 27). Parental pressure may contribute to youth steroid usage. Greeley Tribune [Online].
Fialkov, H. (2006, December 30). Rough hit costs Thomas $7,500. Sun-Sentinel [Online].
Finder, C. (2006, December 14). Appeals panel gives Websters win in disability case. Pittsburgh Post-Gazette [Online].
Fine, A. (2007, December 27). Weighing in on performance-enhancing drugs. Cleveland Jewish News [Online].
Firm Settles. (2006, December 21). Drugs firm settles with athlete doping victims. Expatica [Online].
Fish, M. (1991, September 29). Steroid stigma affects even retired players. Atlanta Journal and Constitution, p. F1.
Fitzpatrick, F. (2001, January 14). Death stalks athletes. Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, p. 1C.
Fleming, D. (2008, August 27). What I did on my summer vacation. ESPN.com [Online].
For Parents. (2007, February 5). Tips for parents. Columbia State [Online].
Fort Worth Students. (1986, April 27). Fort Worth area high school students admit using steroids. United Press International [Online].
Funk, A. (2006, September 6). Another insurance option? training-conditioning.com [Online].
Gallagher, C. (2006, March 15). Steroid use affects many college sports. Cavalier Daily [Online].
Gamerman, E. (2005, November 27). High schools use sophisticated tools to detect, prevent injuries. Wall Street Journal [in Chicago Sun-Times, p. A6].
Garafolo, M. (2008, July 28). Olivea happy NY Giants gave him a second chance. Star-Ledger [Online].
Gilbert, M. (2007, June 19). Pharmacy board to aid UT probe. Toledo Blade [Online].
Gillen, H. (2008, March 28). Few problems with steroids for high school students, coaches say. Capital News Service [Online].
Girls Use. (2005, June 15). Girls use the juice, too. The Associated Press [Online].
Glauber, B. (2005, September 25). Growing concerns. Newsday, p. B6.
Goldberg, K. (2007, August 30). Prep football players bigger than ever. Times Herald-Record [Online].
Gramza, J. (2006, July 18). Weightlifting death risk. ScienCentral.com [Online].
Gramza, J. (2008, April 8). Muscle drug injuries. ScienCentral.com [Online].
Greifner, L. (2007, March 28). N.J. steroid testing gets attention in other states. Education Week [Online].
Growing Problem. (2007, January 24). A growing problem. Kansas City Star, p. D2.
Growth Chart. (2005, September 11). Off the growth chart. Lexington Herald-Leader [Online].
Hargrove, T. (2006, January 31). Heavy NFL players twice as likely to die before 50. Scripps Howard News Service [Online].
Hargrove, T. (2007, January 31). Is NFL on diet? Smallest teams make Super Bowl. Scripps Howard News Service [Online].
Heart Defects. (2008, November 12). Heart defects found in 5 Russian hockey players. The Associated Press [Online].
Helliker, K., & Kranhold, K. (2005, June 23). Signs of heart defects in young athletes ignored. Wall Street Journal [in Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Online].
Henderson, J. (2007, January 18). Athlete’s sudden death stuns USF. Tampa Tribune [Online].
Henderson, J. (2007, December 28). Whatever it takes to stay in the game. Tampa Tribune [Online].
Hicklin, S. (2008, September 12). Only one player in the state failed steroid testing program. South Florida Sun-Sentinel [Online].
Hightower, K., Limon, I, & Hoppes, L. (2008, April 11). UCF players, coach differ over football player’s death. Orlando Sentinel [Online].
Hofmann, R. (2002, June 23). Testing won’t shrink players. Philadelphia Daily News, p. Sports-1.
Hofmann, R. (2005, August 25). Weight limits the NFL can live with. Philadelphia Daily News [in Centre Daily, Online].
Huff, D. (1985, July 7). Drugs in the high schools. Washington Post [Online].
Huff, D., & Berkowitz, S. (1987, January 5). Athletes’ medical care may be inadequate. Washington Post, p. C3.
Hyde, D. (2002, December 29). The strange journey of Jake Scott. South Florida Sun-Sentinel [in Kansas City Star, p. C8].
Insurance Halts. (1986, November 21). Insurance firm halts new football policies. United Press International [Online].
Insurers Balk. (2004, August 22). Insurers balk at big coverage areas. Kansas City Star, p. A12.
Isikoff M. (1990, September 8). HHS says teen steroid use appears to be spreading. Washington Post, p. A1.
Jenkins, J. (2006, January 1). Who pays the bills? Former players frequently face financial pain. Sacremento Bee, p. C7.
Johnston, J. (2002, July 20). Worth dying for? Questions abound a year after four football players died in the heat. Tampa Tribune, p. Sports-1.
Judd, A. (2008, May 6). College drug testing varies by school. Atlanta Journal-Constitution [Online].
Judge Tells. (2005, October 14). Judge tells lawsuit parties to ‘work it out.’ nbc5i.com [Online].
Kallestad, B. (2008, March 14). Tests: Steroid abuse rare in Fla. high schools. The Associated Press [Online].
Kamm, G. (2008, June 17). Autopsy: Enlarged heart killed NFL draft prospect, but possible drugs were nearby. First Coast News [Online].
Kantowski, R. (2005, August 22). Herrion’s death brings up weighty issue in NFL. Las Vegas Sun [Online].
Karash, J.A. (2003, September 23). Sticker shock: The rising cost of health-care insurance sends employers, workers staggering. Kansas City Star, p. D1.
Kanaby, R.F. (2008, February 27). Testimony of Robert F. Kanaby, executive director, National Federation of State High School Associations. In Subcommittee on Commerce, Trade and Consumer Protection, U.S. House of Representatives, Drugs in sports: Compromising the health of athletes and undermining the integrity of competition. [Online].
Kelly, R. (2006, March 31). Hillsboro High students are upset over decision on dismissals. St. Louis Post-Dispatch [Online].
Kindred, D. (2001, August 12). Bodies so powerful, yet so vulnerable. The Sporting News [Online].
Kindred, D. (2001, September 17). A sea change in thinking is in order. The Sporting News, p. 72.
King, P. (2008, June 9). The cautionary tale of Jason Peter. SI.com [Online].
Kinkead, L.D., & Romboy, D. (2005, October 30). Chasing glory: Football is an all-consuming passion and dream for many young Utahns. Deseret Morning News [Online].
Klosterman, C. (2007, March 26). Why we look. ESPN The Magazine, p. 90.
Knapp, G. (2001, August 12). Drug policies can be paradoxical. San Francisco Chronicle, p. D11.
Knapp, G. (2005, November 6). Race sponsor’s product sends wrong message. San Francisco Chronicle [Online].
Knapp, G. (2007, June 17). Outside help should embarrass the NFL. San Francisco Chronicle [Online].
Knee Injuries. (2008, May 23). High school knee injuries by sport and gender. ScienceDaily.com.
Korte, S. (2007, February 25). Former Flyers back Nash is dead at 24. Belleville News-Democrat [Online].
Korth, J. (2006, January 29). XL means Xtra large. St. Petersburg Times [Online].
Krueger, C. (2008, June 11). Telephone interview with author.
Laird, B. (2008, June 5). Telephone interview with author.
Large, Retired. (2008, November 11). Football players: Staying active may lower health risks for large, retired athletes. Science Daily [Oline].
Latane, L. II. (2005, October 19). Student says coach gave him steroids. Richmond Times-Dispatch [Online].
Lazerus, M. (2007, July 12). Football coaches unsure if there’s a steroid problem. Gary Post-Tribune [Online].
League Steps. (2007, August 14). League outlines steps taken to address concussions. ESPN.com [Online].
Lesmerises, D. (2006, July 30). Insurance program in place for injuries such as Gentry’s. Cleveland Plain Dealer [Online].
Lombardi, J. (2006, January 26). School nurses urged to look for signs of substance abuse. White Plains Journal News [Online].
Lombardo, N. (2006, May 15). For some, bigger isn’t always better. Oakland Press [Online].
Lopez, J. (2006, November 10). Pre-1977 NFL players fight for better pension. BlackAthlete Sports Network [Online].
Louwagie, P., & Seifert, K. (2003, April 26). Stringer claims against Vikings dismissed. Minneapolis Star Tribune, p. 1A.
Lovelace, S. (2007, December 19). Carrying a heavy burden. Baltimore Sun [Online].
Low, C. (2005, September 15). Heavy hitters on Vols line risking health. Nashville Tennessean [Online].
Luder, B. (2001, January 22). NOT just fun & games. Kansas City Star, p. C1.
Lyons, S.P. (2001, November 25). School safety: Bill proposes CPR certification for coaches. Boston Globe, p. Globe West-1.
MacKinnon, J. (2007, September 12). Everett’s injury latest in long list of devastating hits. Edmonton Journal [Online].
Macur, J. (2008, November 29). Born to run? Little ones get test for sports gene. New York Times [Online].
Mahon, R.L. (2005, October 9). Obesity and death on the gridiron. St. Louis Post-Dispatch, p. B3.
Mannie, K. (2004, April 13). Designer steroids: Ugly and dangerous. NaturalStrength.com [Online].
Mannie, K. (2005, April 25). Time to strike out the steroid mess. NCAA News Online [Online].
Marchione, M. (2008, April 12). ‘Alarming’ peek at kids’ arteries. Kansas City Star, p. A7.
Marinello, S. (2006, May 25). IGF-1. Blogcritics.org [Online].
Marinello, S. (2006, July 25). How are athletes recovering so quickly from major surgeries? Blogcritics.org [Online].
Marinello, S. (2007, March 14). A steroid scandal hits a suburban New Jersey high school. Blogcritics.org [Online].
Marinello, S. (2008, October 26). The NFL’s drug problem rears its ugly head, again. Blogcritics.org [Online].
Marshall, Janette. (2008, November 16). Waisting away: You and your BMI index. London Telegraph [Online].
Marshall, John. (2001, September 9). High school pre-participation examinations beginning to come under growing scrutiny. Chicago Sun-Times, p. 106.
Martinez, A. (2007, April 13). Roid rage: Anger over doping spurs Legislature to push for more drug testing. McAllen Monitor [Online].
Matthews, W. (2005, August 24). NFL’s obesity a ticking time bomb. Newsday [Online].
McCloskey, J. (2005, July 2). Here, there, everywhere? Not in my school … Houston Chronicle [Online].
McConnaughey, J. (2007, May 31). NFL study links concussions, depression. The Associated Press [Online].
McNulty, R. (2007, July 9). The truth be told, we’re all at the root of escalating problem. Scripps Howard News Service [Online].
Meggyesy, D. (2008, June 7). Telephone interview with author.
Mero, T. (2005, October 15). Survey shows widespread use of supplements among local football players. Lodi News-Sentinel [Online].
Metabolic Syndrome. (2005, May 7). Metabolic syndrome is costly. The Associated Press [Online].
Michener, J. (1976). Sports in America. New York: Random House.
Molinaro, B. (2007, September 4). Discovery of HGH use won’t spoil football, nor should it. Virginian-Pilot [Online].
Montgomery, R. (2005, May 17). The battle over weight. Kansas City Star, p. A1.
Mosier, J. (2005, October 15). Judge rules woman can sue coach for slander. Dallas Morning News [Online].
Mu, E. (2005, December 15). Bioethicist, sports CEO debate drug use. Daily Princetonian [Online].
Mueller, F.O., & Cantu, R.C. (2008). Annual survey of catastrophic football injuries. Chapel Hill, NC: National Center for Catastrophic Sports Injury Research.
Mueller, F.O., & Colgate, B. (2008, February). Annual survey of football injury research. Chapel Hill, NC: National Center for Catastrophic Sports Injury Research.
Mundell, E.J. (2005, March 1). Supersized in the NFL. Healthday [Online].
Murray, K., & Barker, J. (2007, June 7). NFL, union called to Congress. Baltimore Sun [Online].
Myers, G. (2002, July 21). Feeling, heat, NFL makes changes. New York Daily News, p. 68.
Myers, G. (2005, August 27). NFL has BIG problem. New York Daily News [Online].
Myers, G. (2006, September 7). Goodell: HGH not NFL issue. New York Daily News [Online].
NCAA Composition. (2008, October 27). Composition and sport sponsorship of the NCAA. ncaa.org [Online].
NCAA Summer. (2007, May 5). NCAA summer drug testing. forums.steroid.com [Online].
NCAA Tax. (2006, November 11). Brand defends NCAA tax status. Kansas City Star, p. D2.
NCAA Test. (2006, May 3). NCAA drug test. forums.steroid.com [Online].
NCAA Testing. (2008, October 31). NCAA drug-testing results 2005-06 and 2006-07. 2008 NCAA Executive Committee Supplement No. 13. Indianapolis, IN: National Collegiate Athletic Association.
Nelson, G. (1989, June 11). Courts are needed to ease players’ pain. St. Louis Post-Dispatch, p. 1D.
Newell, K. (2006, May 1). Policy matters: Sports insurance for coaches and athletes. Coach and Athletic Director [Online].
Next Frontier. (2006, August 8). The next frontier of sports doping. CBS News [Online].
NFL Cardiac. (2007, March 14). Weight of NFL players to be part of cardiac study. The Associated Press [Online].
N.J. High Schooler. (2007, September 12). Random screenings show one N.J. high schooler using steroids. The Associated Press [Online].
Obesity Numbers. (2005, August 24). Obesity by the numbers. Baton Rouge Advocate [Online].
Obesity Problem? (2005, March 1). Does the NFL have an obesity problem? The Associated Press [Online].
O’Brien, K. (2008, October 5). High school players are bigger than ever. Boston Globe [Online].
O’Connor, I. (2007, February 3). Battered bodies a symbol of NFL. Bergen Record [Online].
O’Keefe, K. (2007). Spartan Football 2007: Paperwork needed for football eligibility. Seven Lakes High School summer football schedule and camp information. Seven Lakes, TX.
O’Keeffe, M. (2008, May 10). Specialists teaming with Gridiron Greats to offer care for ex-NFL players. New York Daily News [Online].
O’Keeffe, M. (2008, June 4). Patriots lineman Nicholas Kaczur turns informant in painkiller plot. New York Daily News [Online].
Olympics’ Insurance. (2004, April 28). Olympics’ insurance covers terror, disaster. Kansas City Star, p. D2.
Orsborn, T. (2007, April 12). Local officials don’t see major steroid problem. San Antonio Express-News [Online].
Owens, D.E. (2006, May 9). Bigger athletes redefine ‘healthy.’ Kansas City Star, p. E7.
Paralyzed Athletes. (2000, January 25). Paralyzed athletes. Kansas City Star, p. C4.
Pardo, S. (2008, October 21). Injury waivers challenged. Detroit News [Online].
Parents Want. (2008, November 17). For high school doping, parents want school intervention, low penalties. University of Michigan News [Online].
Petersen, A. (2008, May 26). Legal obstacles prevent Iowa from testing athletes. Quad-City Times [Online].
Player Dies. (2008, October 2). High school football player dies from MRSA. Central Florida News 13 [Online].
Problem HGH. (2008, February 20). NFLPA’s Vincent: NFL doesn’t have a big problem with HGH. The Associated Press [Online].
Purpura, D. (2005, August 14). The trickle-down effect. Lancaster Eagle-Gazette [Online].
Ratto, R. (2006, February 1). NFL, players need to act now to trim weight. CBS SportsLine.com [Online].
Reinwald, P. (1988, October 1). Most area high school football coaches favor drug testing. St. Petersburg Times, p. 1C.
Riboli, E. (2008, November 13). ‘Love handles’ raise death risk. BBC News [Online].
Romboy, D. (2007, October 27). Painkillers, the dark side of sports. Deseret Morning News [Online].
Rosenblatt, S., & Saad, N. (2008, May 30). Irvine high school shaken after death of football player, 15. Los Angeles Times [Online].
Roth, L. (2005, August 28). Super-sized Bills are worried, too. Rochester Democrat and Chronicle [Online].
Ruckno, H. (2007, September 26). News of steroid use discouraging, not surprising to area school officials. Wilkes-Barre Citizens Voice [Online].
Ryan, J. (2005, March 24). Alcohol is a much bigger problem than steroids. San Francisco Chronicle [Online].
Sagan, N. (2007, September 17). Legal ’roids, better pads may be in NFL’s future. msnbc.com [Online].
Samson, D. (2003, February 7). Schools can use these lifesavers. Kansas City Star, p. D1.
Sandalow, M. (2005, June 16). Many teenage girls abuse steroids, lawmakers told. San Francisco Chronicle [Online].
Sanders, L. (2007, February 25). Muscle-bound. New York Times [Online].
Saunders, M. (2002, July 26). Fatalities in heat on rise: Supplements could be cause of deaths. Cleveland Plain Dealer, p. D1.
Sceifo, J., & Johnson, D. (2005, March 7). Texas, football and juice. Newsweek [Online].
Scheyer Accused. (2004, January 6). Scheyer accused of prescribing without exam. ESPN.com [Online].
Schmidt, M.S. (2007, March 1). Steelers deny players received doctor’s drugs. New York Times [Online].
Schoffner, C. (1989, October 5). Schultz says tougher testing alone won’t solve problem. The Associated Press [Online].
School Injuries. (2006, November 30). High school sports injuries. ConsumerReports.org [Online].
Schools Advised. (2002, August 29). Schools advised to ‘proceed with caution’ when testing students for drugs. The Associated Press [Online].
Schrotenboer, B. (2005, January 22). Accusation is latest in Ohton’s legal fight. San Diego Union-Tribune [Online].
Schrotenboer, B. (2005, January 28). Aztecs have submitted fewest samples in MWC. San Diego Union-Tribune [Online].
Schrotenboer, B. (2005, April 20). Former offensive line coach Baldwin denies claims made by former players. San Diego Union-Tribune [Online].
Schrotenboer, B. (2008, September 21). Why less outrage over drugs in the NFL? San Diego Union-Tribune [Online].
Schulte, D. (2008, April 24). Steroid inquiry widens to teen athletes. Tulsa World [Online].
Schwarz, A. (2007, June 15). Lineman, dead at 36, sheds light on brain injuries. New York Times [Online].
Shipley, A. (2005, November 30). Steroids detected in dietary tablets. Washington Post, p. E1.
Shorten Lives. (1988, June 27). Careers may shorten lives, say NFL players. St. Petersburg Times, p. 1C.
Silverstein, T. (1996, May 18). How did Packers’ Favre get his painkillers? Milwaukee Journal Sentinel [in St. Louis Post-Dispatch].
Singer, E. (2007, October 18). Mimicking the massively muscular. Technology Review [Online].
Singer, E. (2007, October 26). Next-Generation sports doping. Technology Review [Online].
Slezak, C. (2005, May 1). Steroid hearings a waste of everyone’s time, money. Chicago Sun-Times [Online].
Sports Injuries. (2006, September 28). Safer gear slashes high-school sports injuries. The Associated Press [Online].
Stadium Insurance. (2002, August 28). Stadium insurance increasing. Kansas City Star, p. D2.
Steele, D. (2002, September 1). Adding insult to injury. San Francisco Chronicle, p. D1.
Steele, D. (2007, October 10). Honesty not the best policy for cheating athletes. Baltimore Sun [Online].
Stein, J. (2008, April 7). Normal but fat. Los Angeles Times, p. F2.
Steinberg, D. (2008, November 7). Ryan Clark, Sean Taylor tributes and the NFL. washingtonpost.com [Online].
Stephens, M. (2005, May 6). Many coaches view proposed regulations as added burden. San Francisco Chronicle [Online].
Steroids Death. (1989, January 11). Football player’s death attributed to steroids. United Press International [Online].
Straub, B. (2006, January 31). Number of 300-pounders increasing on prep teams. Scripps Howard News Service [Online].
Subcommittee on Commerce, Trade, and Consumer Protection, U.S. House of Representatives. (2008, February 27). Drugs in sports: Compromising the health of athletes and undermining the integrity of competition. Webcast [Online].
Sumers, B. (2007, August 7). High schools try to tackle the heat. St. Louis Post-Dispatch [Online].
Teicher, A. (2006, October 22). One huge hit. Kansas City Star, p. Extra1.
Telander, R. (2001, August 21). Courting disaster at NU. Chicago Sun-Times [Online].
Telander, R. (2001, October 10). NU points the finger. Chicago Sun-Times [Online].
Telander, R. (2001, November 21). Stringer’s lasting legacy. Chicago Sun-Times [Online].
Thomas, B. (2006, October 2). Congress’ letter to the NCAA. USA Today [Online].
Tight End Paralyzed. (2007, September 11). Bills tight end likely paralyzed. Kansas City Star, p. C3.
Toner, J. (2006, September 25). Telephone interview with author.
Torres, K. (2007, May 14). Bill would provide injury insurance for jockeys. Occupational Hazards [Online].
UNC Study. (2002, July 25). UNC Study: Heat-Related deaths steadily rising. Newsday, p. A57.
U.S. GAO. (2005, November 3). Anabolic steroids are easily purchased without a prescription and present significant challenges to law enforcement officials. GAO report to Committee on Government Reform, House of Representatives. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Accountability Office.
U.S. Obesity. (2007, November 29). U.S. obesity rates seem to be leveling off, study indicates. The Associated Press [Online].
Usiak, D. (1989, May 18). State Senate panel told of steroid problem. United Press International [Online].
Voepel, M. (2002, August 21). Head games: Schools trying to understand effects of concussions. Kansas City Star, p. D1.
Waller, S. (2008, July 1). Message to avoid steroids getting out, coaches say. Abilene Reporter-News [Online].
Walsh, C. (2007, February 17). Bigger steps needed to end steroid use. Tuscaloosa News [Online].
Watson, G. (2008, September 22). Ball State’s Love OK after spinal fracture, but career likely over. ESPN.com [Online].
Williamson, B. (2008, May 1). Fun-loving Benedict was considered prime draft prospect. ESPN.com [Online].
Wise, M. (2005, August 23). Living large, dying young. Washington Post, p. E1.
Wodraska, L. (2007, August 12). So many reasons to love football. Salt Lake Tribune [Online].
Wulderk, L. (2007, March 8). U of M research shows link between sports, unhealthy weight control and steroid use in teens. University of Minnesota News [Online].
Yesalis, C.E. (2005, March 10). Statement of Charles E. Yesalis. In Committee on Energy and Commerce, U.S. House of Representatives. Steroid in sports: Cheating the system and gambling your health (H. Hrg. No. 109-65). Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office.
Yesalis, C.E. (2005, April 19). Letter correspondence to Marsha Blackburn. In Committee on Energy and Commerce, U.S. House of Representatives. (2005, March 10). Steroid in sports: Cheating the system and gambling your health (H. Hrg. No. 109-65). Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office.
Yesalis, C.E. (2006, February 17). Telephone interview with author.
Yesalis, C.E. (2006, September 12). Telephone interview with author.
Yesalis, Charles. (2006, June 22). Interview with Charles Yesalis. Fredericksburg Free Lance-Star [Online].
Youngmisuk, O. (2007, June 11). Former players say enduring pain, concussions not worth it. New York Daily News [Online].
Zirin, D. (2006, August 27). The long odds of success on the gridiron. Los Angeles Times [Online].
Zirin, D. (2007, June 27). High impact: What football owes its players. The Nation [Online].

Matt Chaney is a journalist, editor, teacher and publisher in Missouri. E-mail him at mattchaney@fourwallspublishing.com. For more information about his 2009 book Spiral of Denial: Muscle Doping in American Football, visit the home page at www.fourwallspublishing.com.