Newer, Better High School Football Helmets Still No Guarantee Against Brain Injuries

(KPIX 5) -- It's not only America's highest-paid athletes back on the gridiron this fall - it's the Bay Area's best and brightest: high school students with concerned parents on the sidelines. And in the sport known to produce the highest incidence of concussion, we took a look at what's being done to protect those growing brains.

WATCH KPIX 5 THURSDAY NIGHT @ 10 P.M. TO SEE HOW HELMETS PERFORM

In the late afternoon sunshine, the Mission San Jose High School football team gathered in a quick huddle.

"Warriors on three!" one player shouted. "One, two, three, Warriors!" his teammates yelled in response.

When the Warriors hit the practice field in Fremont, each is wearing some of the $1000 worth of gear issued to every player. The helmets alone cost about $300.

"That's the most critical piece of safety equipment we have," said head coach Sam Baugh. "Our helmets are checked into what we call the 'arms room' every night."

Baugh chooses which models to use based on a rating system produced by Virginia Tech University.

CHECK YOUR SCHOOL'S HELMETS:Database Of Local Teams' Helmet Choices

"It's the only thing we have--outside the vendors--to go by to rate a helmet to make sure we're doing everything we can to put our kids in the proper or safest equipment out there," he explained.

Virginia Tech has produced the helmet ratings for four years now, on a scale of one to five stars, from worst to best for reducing head acceleration, and therefore - they say - reducing the risk of concussion.

"The risk is dramatic," said Virginia Tech professor of biomedical engineering Stefan Duma. "For example, if you move from a one-star helmet to some of the better four and five star helmets, you cut your concussion rate in half."

Duma says when they launched the ratings, only one manufacturer made a 5-star helmet. Now there are nine 5-star helmets made by four different companies. But he's not ready to say helmets are the ultimate key to safety.

"The rules and the coaching are the most important," Duma said. "The equipment is really the third layer of protection."

On the field at Mission, all varsity players wear 5-star rated helmets. Everyone else has at least a 4-star. But Coach Baugh agrees the helmet isn't everything.

"What we found was it didn't matter what helmet we put the kid in, it came to the technique the kid was using," Baugh said. "No helmet would prevent a concussion."

So the Warriors adopted a heads-up tackling system - and watched their concussions drop from six per season... to one.

Players are taught to adopt a defensive body posture, lowering themselves before they make contact with an opponent. They swing their arms from back to front, the momentum carrying their hips forward, and head back out of the way.

Baugh's not looking at it like just another style, but a new era for the game he loves. He won't put players on the field that don't do it. And he won't hire coaches that won't teach it.

"Safety advancements are going to come," he explained. "We just have to be able to put our ego on the shelf and allow the game to change so that it's safer, so that more people can enjoy it long after we're gone."

WEB EXCLUSIVE: Mission San Jose High School Head Coach Sam Baugh explains "helmetless" tackling in detail.

Mission San Jose Warriors: http://www.msj-football.com/


CHECK YOUR SCHOOL'S HELMETS: 
Look up your high school football team's helmet here. Not every school responded to our request for information.

Once you have the brand and model, check the star rating according to the Virginia Tech rating guide here. (Not every single model was included in the ratings. For Adams helmets, Adams USA Inc. is no longer selling football helmets. The company tells us they have sold that part of their business to Schutt.)

Keep in mind, lead researcher Stefan Duma says the ratings system isn't everything - that you want to have the best rules and coaching possible first.

And one manufacturer that makes 5-star rated helmets even told us, "We believe that helmets cannot significantly reduce even the risk of concussion."

SCROLL DOWN TO FIND YOUR SCHOOL, BY COUNTY:
ONCE YOU KNOW THE HELMET TYPE, CHECK ITS STAR RATING HERE:Virgina Tech Helmet Ratings

COUNTY SCHOOL HELMETS
Alameda Alameda HS Riddell Revolution Speed
Alameda Encinal HS No Information Provided
Alameda Albany HS No Information Provided
Alameda Berkeley HS Riddell Revolution Speed
Alameda Castro Valley HS Riddell Revolution Speed
Alameda Dublin HS Riddell Revolution, Riddell Revolution Speed
Alameda Emery Secondary School Riddell Revolution
Alameda American HS Riddell Revolution Speed
Alameda Irvington HS No Information Provided
Alameda Kennedy HS No Information Provided
Alameda Mission San Jose HS Riddell Revolution Speed, Rawlings Impulse, Xenith X2
Alameda Washington HS Riddell Revolution Speed, Rawlings Impulse
Alameda Hayward HS Riddell Revolution, Schutt Vengeance
Alameda Mt. Eden HS Riddell Revolution Speed, Riddell Revolution (phasing out), Schutt XP Pro
Alameda Tennyson HS No Information Provided
Alameda Moreau Catholic HS Riddell (no model provided)
Alameda Granada HS No Information Provided
Alameda Livermore HS Riddell Revolution Speed, Riddell Revolution, SG Adult
Alameda Logan HS Riddell Revolution, Riddell Revolution Speed, Schutt DNA
Alameda Newark Memorial HS No Information Provided
Alameda Castlemont HS No Information Provided
Alameda Fremont HS No Information Provided
Alameda McClymonds HS No Information Provided
Alameda Oakland HS Riddell Revolution Speed, Riddell Revolution
Alameda Oakland Technical HS Riddell Revolution Speed, Riddell Revolution
Alameda Skyline HS No Information Provided
Alameda Piedmont HS No Information Provided
Alameda Amador Valley HS Riddell Revolution Speed, Riddell Revolution, Rawlings Adult
Alameda Foothill HS Riddell Revolution Speed
Alameda San Leandro HS Riddell Revolution Speed, Riddell Revolution (phasing out), Schutt Air XP Pro
Alameda Arroyo HS Riddell Revolution Speed
Alameda San Lorenzo HS Riddell Revolution, Revolution Speed, Riddell VSR-4
Alameda Valley Christian (Dublin) Riddell Revolution Speed
Alameda Clayton Valley Charter HS No Information Provided
Contra Costa Acalanes HS Riddell Revolution Speed & Riddell Revolution Speed Classic
Contra Costa Las Lomas HS No Information Provided
Contra Costa Campolindo HS Riddell Revolution Speed, Schutt  XP, Schutt DNA, Rawlings NRG Quantum Varsity
Contra Costa Miramonte HS Riddell Revoltion Speed
Contra Costa Antioch HS No Information Provided
Contra Costa Deer Valley HS No Information Provided
Contra Costa John Swett High School No Information Provided
Contra Costa Freedom HS Riddell Revolution, Rawlings Impulse
Contra Costa Heritage HS Riddell Revolution (phasing out)
Contra Costa Liberty HS No Information Provided
Contra Costa Alhambra HS Riddell Revolution, Rawlings Impulse
Contra Costa College Park HS No Information Provided
Contra Costa Concord HS Riddell Revoltion Speed, Schutt DNA
Contra Costa Mt Diablo HS Riddell Revolution, Schutt (no model provided)
Contra Costa Northgate HS No Information Provided
Contra Costa Ygnacio Valley HS Riddell Revolution Speed, Rawlings Impuse; Schutt Air (phasing out)
Contra Costa Pittsburg HS No Information Provided
Contra Costa California HS Riddell Revolution
Contra Costa Dougherty Valley HS No Information Provided
Contra Costa Monte Vista HS No Information Provided
Contra Costa San Ramon Valley HS Riddell Revolution, Riddell Revolution Speed, Schutt Air XP, Xenith X-1, Rawlings XRD
Contra Costa DeAnza HS Schutt Air XP, Riddell Speed
Contra Costa El Cerrito HS Riddell Revolution, Revolution Speed, Revolution Speed 360
Contra Costa Hercules HS No Information Provided
Contra Costa Kennedy HS No Information Provided
Contra Costa Pinole Valley HS Riddell Speed Revolution, Riddell Revolution, Schutt (no model provided)
Contra Costa Pittsburg High School Riddell Revolution Speed, Riddell Revolution, Schutt XP
Contra Costa Richmond HS No Information Provided
Contra Costa De La Salle HS Riddell 360, Schutt DNA
Marin Marin Catholic HS No Information Provided
Marin Novato HS No Information Provided
Marin San Marin HS Riddell Revolution, Riddell Revolution Speed
Marin San Rafael HS Riddell Revolution Speed, Schutt DNA, Schutt XP, Rawlings NRG
Marin Terra Linda HS Riddell Revolution Speed, Rawlings, Schutt, Xenith (no models provided)
Marin Tamalpais HS No Information Provided
Marin Redwood HS No Information Provided
Marin Sir Francis Drake HS Riddell Revolution
Marin Tomales HS No Information Provided
Napa Calistoga Junior/Senior HS No Information Provided
Napa American Canyon HS Riddell Revolution, Riddell 360
Napa Napa HS Riddell 360, Riddell Revolution Speed, Schutt (no model provided)
Napa Vintage HS Schutt Vengeance, Schutt DNA, Riddell Speed, Riddell 360
Napa St. Helena HS Riddell 360, Riddell Revolution Speed, Schutt Vengeance, Schutt Air XP, Schutt Ion 4D
Napa Justin Sienna HS Schutt Vengeance, Xenith X2E, Riddell Revolution, Riddell Revolution Speed, Schutt ION 4D
San Francisco Burton HS Schutt DNA, Riddell Revolution
San Francisco Galileo HS Schutt Pro Air II, Adams Grid Elite, Rawlings NRG Momentum
San Francisco Lincoln HS No Information Provided
San Francisco Lowell HS No Information Provided
San Francisco Mission HS Riddell Revolution
San Francisco Washington HS No Information Provided
San Francisco St. Ignatius College Prep No Information Provided
San Francisco Archibishop Riordan HS Riddell Revolution A Model
San Francisco Stuart Hall Riddell Revolution
San Francisco Sacred Heart Cathedral Prep Riddell Revolution Speed
San Mateo Half Moon Bay HS Riddell Revolution Speed
San Mateo Jefferson HS Riddell Revolution Speed
San Mateo Terra Nova HS Riddell Revolution Speed, Riddell Revoltion, Riddell Revolution 360
San Mateo Aragon HS Riddell Revolution, Riddell Revolution Speed, Rawlings Quantum
San Mateo Burlingame HS Riddell Revolution, Riddell Speed
San Mateo Capuchino HS Riddell Revolution, Riddell Revolution Speed
San Mateo Hillsdale HS Riddell Revolution, Riddell Revolution Speed
San Mateo Mills HS Riddell Revolution, Riddell Revolution Speed, Schutt Air XP, Rawlings (no model provided)
San Mateo San Mateo HS Riddell Revolution, Riddell Revolution Speed
San Mateo Carlmont HS Riddell Revolution, Riddell Revolution Speed
San Mateo Menlo-Atherton HS No Information Provided
San Mateo Sequoia HS Xenith X2, Riddell Revolution, Riddell Revolution Speed, Riddell 360
San Mateo Woodside HS No Information Provided
San Mateo El Camino HS No Information Provided
San Mateo South San Francisco HS No Information Provided
San Mateo Junipero Serra HS Riddell Revolution Speed
San Mateo Menlo School Riddell Revolution Speed
Santa Clara Valley Christian (San Jose) Riddell Revolution Speed, Riddell 360
Santa Clara Bellarmine College Prep Riddell Revolution Speed
Santa Clara Pinewood School Riddell 360
Santa Clara St. Francis High School Riddell Revolution Speed
Santa Clara Harker School No Information Provided
Santa Clara Archbishop Mitty HS Riddell Revolution Speed, Riddell 360
Santa Clara Branham HS No Information Provided
Santa Clara Del Mar HS No Information Provided
Santa Clara Leigh HS No Information Provided
Santa Clara Prospect HS Riddell Revolution Speed
Santa Clara Westmont HS No Information Provided
Santa Clara Andrew P. Hill No Information Provided
Santa Clara Evergreen Valley HS Riddell Revolution Speed
Santa Clara Independence HS No Information Provided
Santa Clara James Lick HS No Information Provided
Santa Clara Mt. Pleasant HS No Information Provided
Santa Clara Oak Grove HS Riddell Revolution Speed; Riddell Revolution
Santa Clara Piedmont Hills No Information Provided
Santa Clara Santa Teresa HS Schutt XP, Rawlings Impulse
Santa Clara Silver Creek HS No Information Provided
Santa Clara William C. Overfelt HS No Information Provided
Santa Clara Yerba Buena HS No Information Provided
Santa Clara Cupertino HS Rawlings NRG, Schutt, Riddell (no models provided)
Santa Clara Fremont HS (Sunnyvale) Riddell Revolution Speed
Santa Clara Homestead HS Riddell Revolution Speed
Santa Clara Lynbrook HS No Information Provided
Santa Clara Monta Vista HS Riddell Revolution Speed, Riddell Revolution
Santa Clara Gilroy HS Riddell Revolution Speed
Santa Clara Christopher HS No Information Provided
Santa Clara Los Gatos HS Riddell Revolution, Riddell Revolution Speed, Xenith, Shutt (no models provided)
Santa Clara Saratoga HS Riddell Revolution Speed
Santa Clara Milpitas HS No Information Provided
Santa Clara Ann Sobrato HS No Information Provided
Santa Clara Live Oak HS Xenith X2E, Rawlings Quantum, Rawlings Impulse, Riddell Revolution Speed
Santa Clara Mountain View HS Riddell Revolution Speed
Santa Clara Los Altos HS Riddell Revolution Speed
Santa Clara Palo Alto HS Riddell Revolution Speed
Santa Clara Gunn HS Riddell Revolution Speed & Riddell Revolution
Santa Clara Gunderson HS No Information Provided
Santa Clara Leland HS Riddell Revolution
Santa Clara Lincoln HS No Information Provided
Santa Clara Pioneer HS No Information Provided
Santa Clara San Jose HS No Information Provided
Santa Clara Santa Clara HS No Information Provided
Santa Clara Wilcox HS Riddell Revolution
Solano Benicia HS No Information Provided
Solano Dixon HS No Information Provided
Solano Armijo HS No Information Provided
Solano Fairfield HS No Information Provided
Solano Rodriguez HS No Information Provided
Solano Vanden HS No Information Provided
Solano Vacaville High School Schutt Air XP
Solano Will C. Wood HS No Information Provided
Solano Jesse Bethel HS No Information Provided
Solano Vallejo HS No Information Provided
Solano Vacaville Christian No Information Provided
Solano St. Patrick-St. Vincent HS No Information Provided
Sonoma Casa Grande HS No Information Provided
Sonoma Petaluma HS Riddell Revolution, Riddell Revolution Speed, Schutt Vengeance
Sonoma Elsie Allen HS No Information Provided
Sonoma Maria Carrillo HS No Information Provided
Sonoma Montgomery HS No Information Provided
Sonoma Piner HS Riddell Revolution Speed, Riddell 360
Sonoma Santa Rosa HS No Information Provided
Sonoma Analy HS Riddell Revolution Speed
Sonoma El Molino HS Schutt AIR XP, Riddell Revolution Speed, Xenith (no model provided)
Sonoma Cloverdale HS Schutt DNA
Sonoma Rancho Cotati HS Riddell Revolution Speed, Riddell 360, Schutt DNA
Sonoma Healdsburg HS No Information Provided
Sonoma Sonoma Valley HS No Information Provided
Sonoma Windsor HS No Information Provided
Sonoma Cardinal Newman HS Riddell 360, Riddell Revolution Speed, Riddell Revolution, Schutt DNA, Schutt Ion, Xenith X2
Sonoma Rincon Valley Christian No Information Provided
Sonoma St. Vincent de Paul HS Schutt DNA Pro, Xenith, Riddell (no models provided)

 

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