According to a story published by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette ( Story by Janice Crompton, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette ), Peters (PA) police were called to investigate the Peters Twp. football program and head coach Rich Piccinini after receiving a complaint from Children and Youth Services that “an alleged perpetrator is permitting children to play sports with concussions or concussion-like symptoms”. Apparently, according to Mark Mortland, owner of Mortland Physical Therapy who provides trainers to oversee athletes for the sports at the high school, players were being pressured to play with severe head injuries and his trainers were being pressured to allow the kids to play.
What???? Somebody called CYS who in turn asked the Peters police to conduct an investigation of the football program? What is the world turning into? Seems to me, Mortland and his trainers should be held responsible if they permitted something like this to happen. And if it happened during a game where there is a doctor on the sidelines, then the doctor should be held responsible. And what about the parents of the players themselves? Hey, if you think there is a problem take your kid to the hospital or doctor after practice or a game. No player can get back on the field if diagnosed with a concussion if a doctor hasn’t cleared them to play. This whole thing just stinks and sounds kind of fishy to me. Could this be a case of disgruntled parents who have an axe to grind with the current coach? And to go and call CYS who in turn contact the police to conduct an investigation, what an absolute waste of police time. It’s incidences like these and the “illegal hit fines” in the NFL that are going to turn this sport into nothing but two-hand tag within five years if this keeps up.
As a side note, Superintendent Nina Zetty of the school district saind the school conducted it’s own investigation and found no wrongdoing by the football program because it’s not their responsibility to allow injured players to play or practice, it’s the trainer who has the final word and
no player is allowed to play without a medical release. Exactly! This whole thing stinks. Shame on whomever turned this into CYS in the first place.
