Riddell, a leading helmet distributor, urges athletes to “use the proper sports equipment including personal protective equipment (such as helmets, padding, shin guards, and eye and mouth guards),” and that “in order for equipment to protect you, it must be: the right equipment, worn correctly and used every time you play.”

What the company does not tell the athlete – or the parent, is that using any aftermarket protective or preventative equipment voids any and all warranty provided by Riddell. The same goes for Schutt, and all other helmet manufactures.

Brownwood Head Coach Chuck Howard and Dr. Rance A. Boren encountered this exact problem last summer when they began looking into possible concussion-reducing additions to the traditional helmets issued.

“Anything you put into the helmet, any sort of insert or modification, voids the warranty,” Boren said, “because the helmet people look at it and say, ‘we haven’t tested that and we have no idea what is going to happen now that you have altered our product.’ You have the poor coaches who are trying to keep up with the latest technology and do the best for their kids who don’t know where to turn.”

The National Operating Committee on Standards for Athletic Equipment (NOCSAE) was formed in 1969 to be the “leading force in the effort to improve athletic equipment and, as a result, reduce injuries” in football, baseball, hockey, lacrosse, soccer and polo across the NCAA, National Federation of State High School Associations, and various other regulatory bodies.

According to the NOCSAE website:

“A manufacturer has the right, under the NOCSAE standards, to declare its certification void if its product is altered in any way. Accessories can modify mass, change the center of gravity, and potentially interfere with the performance of the helmet system in dispersing impact energies. A manufacturer may engage in additional certification testing of the new model and certify the new model with the add-on product, if it chooses to do so.”

As of today, there has not been a single helmet manufacturer choose “to do so.”

The Texas State 7on7 Association – one of the leading high school 7on7 associations in the country, has just recently adopted one of the numerous products on the market claiming to be concussion reducing. According to a press release issued on June 17, all 128 teams in the 2015 Texas 7on7 State Championships will use the Unequal Halo manufactured by Unequal Technologies on July 9-11 in College Station.

The association claims that the product – which fits much like a headband, will “improve player performance and offer added protection.”

“7on7 is not meant to be a contact sport, but we all know collisions happen,” Vice President of Unequal Technologies Derek Gove said of the company’s product in the press release. “Halo soft head protection is exactly what the sport has needed to help improve player safety and performance without affecting the spirit of the non-impact game.”

The headband uses several military-grade materials in its multiple layers, and is certified by the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM). One of the materials – TriDur, is said to be “5x stronger than steel,” and has, “the virtually unmatched ability to absorb and disperse high impact energy.” The description of the headband goes on to claim that the, “Halo has been shown to reduce peak accelerations and peak g-forces significantly,” in head-to-ground impacts.

These kinds of claims are ones that Boren disagrees with.

“It doesn’t change the concussion mechanism,” Boren said. “If you get hit and become concussed, it is because of a direct hit and impact to your skull. The idea behind the bulletproof products is to reduce the point focus of the energy so it doesn’t hurt as much.”

“If you get hit with a bullet while wearing a bullet proof vest, it will still knock you down and leave a bruise,” Boren explained, “it just didn’t go through you. Even if the pain on your scull is reduced, […] your brain still bounced off of the walls of your skull. While the hit itself was dissipated across the surface of your skin, the force of the blow still traveled laterally across your brain.”

Every year, Brownwood ISD buys between 12-15 new sets of shoulder pads, and just two years ago bought brand new helmets, according to Howard. He also confirmed that all helmets and shoulder pads are reconditioned every two years in accordance with manufacturers requirements and state law.

Howard also assured that every coaching staff at BISD takes concussions –and concussion protocols, very serious; however, he and Boren both agree that there are, “some people out there who over exaggerate concussions to sell products sometimes.” Boren used an example of the FDA reprimanding a company last year because its product claimed to have, “concussion-reducing technology.” The company was forced to re-label its product after the FDA found that they, “had no clinical data to show that it actually reduced concussions,” Bored said.

Concussions go well beyond football, in fact, Boren believes the athletes most at risk are the ones without the proper helmet, padding, and neck muscle strength. Yes, football players are – for the most part – bigger, faster and stronger than most other athletes, but they are much better equipped than other sports, according to Boren. A soccer goalie who bangs his head into the post, two soccer players colliding while going up for a header, a baseball player getting hit by a line drive, or even a basketball player falling to the ground are all likely concussion recipients.

“Most of the concussions I see that are bad, are from other sports,” Boren said. “They are completely unprotected. They have no head padding, they are falling over backwards, and their head hits like a melon. I use football as an example, but football is by no means the only place a concussion can happen.”

In fact, Boren – who has a daughter that he expects will play high school soccer – said that high school girls are more susceptible to concussions, because of their neck strength, or lack there-of. “Without strong neck muscles, they are unable to properly stabilize their head, and if you troll around the internet, you’ll find that there is quite a bit of chatter on the silent concussion epidemic in high school girls soccer.”

However, exploring high school soccer’s “silent concussion epidemic,” will have to wait for another day.

Equipment can only go so far. Implementing new rules and procedures only work if they are followed. Awareness only helps if those being made aware pay attention and apply it. Teammates – as well as coaches, need to be responsible enough to notify someone when a player suffers a concussion. A lesson Boren wants everyone to learn before it is too late.

“The most important thing that I hope is learned, is that we need to recognize the symptoms of a concussion, and get the player off the field.”

Source: Smith, Travis M. “Concussions: A Headache of a Problem - Part Three and a Look into Equipment.” Brownwood Bulletin. N.p., 26 June 2015. Web. 26 June 2015.