Youth-football ranks take a hit as North Jersey parents rethink safety
November 23, 2014, 10:48 PM Last updated: Monday, November 24, 2014, 8:22 AM
By JEFF ROBERTS
The father does not want to say no.
Anthony LoSauro’s two young sons love football. He loves football.
He played at Bergen Catholic and then at Division III Middlebury. But the Ridgewood dad understands the risks. LoSauro sometimes wonders if the four concussions he suffered in his career have slightly slowed his memory recall.
So even with two years remaining before his older son is eligible to play tackle football, LoSauro and his wife, Marybeth, already agonize over the question: Should they let him?
“I’m definitely conflicted about it,” said LoSauro, the father of A.J., 6, and Will, 4. “It’s a hard decision. The subject goes back and forth with us.
“It’s a back-and-forth in a lot of parents’ minds right now.”
As another youth football season draws to a close and the high school state playoffs are in full swing, the LoSauros’ dilemma illustrates the difficult decision facing parents: Does the game’s intrinsic value outweigh its inherent injury risk?
