Newspaper Page Text
Page 2B,The Lee County Ledger, Wednesday, September 28, 2011
Proper helmet-fitting and tackling
techniques help players score in safety
(ARA) - The play is what comes next? Three
called, the ball is snapped, million American chil
is your player prepared for dren - ages 6 to 14 - play
Lester’Js Traclor Service
Food Plots, Gardens, [Bush Hogging, etc
■'£ fl Lester Vinson
j&M 229-344-6237
llfvinson2459@yahoo.com
Dust To Dawn Cleaning Service
residential & commercial
Monday - Friday 8:30 a.m. - until
Free estimates
To get your estimate
today, please call
Kathy Davis 854-8212 or
Rachel Eubanks 854-0634
Licensed
Sumter EMC
Appliance Sales and Service Center
Electronics Repair Most brands repaired
Appliances Repair Factory trained techs
Authorized GE, Frigidaire, Whirlpool,
Maytag, RCA Warranty Station
All work guaranteed
(229) 924-8041 or (800) 342-6978
Cjneoi Rental Rate*!
Office Space
In Lee County
Various Suites Available Call For Details!
Corner Of Century Rd. And US Hwy. 19
Murray m. Webb
& ASSOCIATES
229-446-8802 or 229-343-0243
Owner is a licensed broker in the state of Georgia.
Need Alterations?
XXt-y
2339 Whispering Pines Rd/T
Call 435-3050 M ^
1591 Hwy 19 South 889-0156
2339 Whispering Pines 435-3050
2814 INI. Jefferson 883-8863
Bring this ad and get 10%
off deer processing
(one deer per customer please/standard cut)
Corner of Hwy. 195 and Hwy. 377 - Lee St.
Mon- Sun 8:30 a.m. - 8:30 p.m.,
Open Sunday
organized tackle football,
placing it among the coun
try’s most popular youth
sports, according to USA
Football. And for players,
coaches and parents, safety
is always in season on the
football field. While no hel
met can claim to guarantee
absolute protection from
concussions, it’s never too
early or too late for players,
coaches and parents to
understand proper helmet-
fitting and tackling tech
niques .
“Football helmets are
designed to provide a num
ber of protective benefits
to the player,” says Thad
Ide, senior vice president of
research and development
at Riddell Sports, a leading
football helmet manufac
turer. “A proper, secure
fit ensures all protective
elements of the equipment
are positioned where our
engineers intended them to
be to protect the athlete.”
To encourage a safer
football season, Riddell
provides instruction for
proper helmet fitting, and
USA Football, the sport’s
national governing body in
the United States, promotes
fundamentally sound tack
ling techniques to better
protect players at all levels.
Finding the right lit:
Putting the helmet on -
Measure the circumference
of the player’s head an inch
above his eyebrows, adjust
ing the helmet size accord
ingly. Then, with thumbs
over the bottom of the face
pads and fingers inside
of the helmet, the player
should pull the helmet into
position. Once the helmet
is pushed down completely,
ensure the front is an inch
above each eyebrow.
The chin strap should be
centered firmly over the
chin. Its purpose is to help
hold the helmet in place,
so the face pads should lit
firmly against the face.
Checking for proper lit -
Twist the helmet from side
to side on your player’s
head. The skin of their
forehead should move with
the front pad. As a test,
interlock hands on top of
the player’s helmet and
press down; if the player
feels pressure on the crown
of the head, instead of the
brow, it is a sign of a secure
fit. Even if a helmet feels
too snug, there can still,
potentially, be room for
the athlete’s head to move,
which can lead to injury.
Make sure it’s not too tight
or too loose.
Taking off the helmet
- First, players should
unbuckle the chin strap on
both sides. Then, place an
index finger into each ear
hole, press the face pads
with their thumbs and lift
the helmet up over the head.
USA Football’s tackle
progression model;
Breakdown position -
With the player’s knees
bent at shoulder-width
apart, upper-body at a
45-degree forward lean,
chin up and above the toes,
and his weight on the balls
of his feet; spring forward
with the snap of the
football. While closing
in on the ball-carrier,
players should keep
their eyes below the
runner’s facemask to
leverage their body’s
center of gravity.
Buzz - Once within
three yards of the ball
carrier, players should
buzz their feet with
quick, choppy steps to
control their balance
while continuing to
gain forward ground.
Keep the chin up and
head and shoulders
squared at all times,
even if the ball-carrier
is running on an angle.
Hit position - Clos
ing within one yard
of the ball-carrier,
take a short downhill
power step as if into
an imaginary hole,
keeping a deep bend in
both knees, eyes belt
buckle-high, head and
shoulders square, chin
up and hands pulled back
just beyond the hips. While
keeping a forward lean, the
player’s front foot should
be below the outside of
his chin, and his back foot
directly below his hip.
Rip - On contact, swing
both arms in an uppercut
motion and grab the back
of the ball-carrier’s jersey
at the top the numbers,
while keeping elbows tight
against the ball-carrier’s
side.
Shoot - While ripping
arms into the ball-carrier,
simultaneously snap the
hips open and upward to
ward the front jersey num
bers, forcing the head to
move up and away from the
oncoming runner. To finish,
lift the ball-carrier off the
ground while continuing to
drive legs forward.
“USA Football directs
youth coaches to incremen
tally incorporate proper
contact into their practices,
which lessens the amount
of incidental contact that
players receive through
their helmets,” says Dr.
Stanley Herring of USA
Football’s Football and
Wellness Committee and
the NFL’s Head, Neck and
Spine Committee. “This is
a strong step forward for
player safety in youth foot
ball that any youth sport
should consider emulating.”
This season, everyone can
get involved in protect
ing players by supporting
proper helmet fitting for
each practice and game and
enforcing smart, safe tack
ling techniques. To learn
more, visit www.riddell.
com/fitting-guides.
Lee County Middle
School Football
Post 182 to host Golf Tournament
The American Legion
Baseball Post 182 is
hosting its first annual
golf tournament Monday,
October 24.
Sign-in and lunch begin
at 11:30 a.m. and tee off
is at 1:00 p.m. Entry fee
is $60 per player and
includes two mulligans.
The tournament is a four
man team scramble format
and includes 18 holes of
golf, green fee, ditty bags,
driving range usage, lunch,
door prizes, and place
prizes.
The four players closest
to the pin will have a play
off at making a hole-in-
one for the chance to win
$100,000 cash prize.
To register, send your
name, address, phone
number, handicap, and golf
club to G.C. Croft, 1502
10th Avenue, Albany, GA
31707. Make check payable
to American Legion Post
182. For more information,
call Charlie Lyon at (229)
886-4060 or Larry Cook at
(229) 317-1410.
Home Country
By Slim Randles
It wasn’t long at all
before just about everyone
in the valley knew about
Dewey’s dream girl, Emily
Stickles, she of the county
office in charge of keeping
an eye on things.
It wasn’t long at all be
cause Dewey told everyone
about it. Somewhere, deep
inside him, was this urge
to court this young lady
successfully. So strong was
this urge that Dewey set
out to glean every scrap
of advice from almost
everyone he knew. It was
as though he thought if he
could just come up with an
amalgam of methods, Em
ily would almost have to be
his. And a guy doesn’t rush
something this important.
Success, he knew, comes
about when preparation
meets opportunity. It
was the preparation that
concerned him, as he could
always waylay her some
where between her office
and her home.
And all of us, his
friends, fans and support
ers, wanted to advise him
properly. We’d seen him
through disaster after
disaster, and now he was
the king of fertilizer here
in the valley. For us, it was
as if his success would be
partially ours, as well.
“Dewey, are you sure,
uh, Emily ... it’s Emily,
right? Okay. Are you sure
Emily is available?”
“She is. Doc. She used
to have a steady boyfriend,
but that was back in the
city she came from. She’s
not seeing anyone here at
all.”
“Dewey,” said Steve,
“are you stalking this poor
girl?”
“No, of course not. It’s
just that I had to do my ...
homework a bit. I didn’t
want to rush into this thing
blind.”
“Hey, that goes without
saying,” Herb chimed in.
“Right guys?”
“Yeah. Sure.”
“I’m going to buy some
new clothes before I meet
her,” he said.
“Talk to Anita first,”
Dud said. “She has some
fashion ideas for you. In
fact, she’s been talking
with Sarah and some of the
others, and they all have
suggestions.”
“Thanks! I’ll do it.”
“And Dewey,” Doc
added, in a conspiratorial
tone, “you won’t forget
that showering thing now,
right?”
“For Emily,” said our
stricken swain, sultan of
soil amenities, “I’d shower
twice!”
“Sounds like love to
me,” said Steve.
Brought to you by Slim’s
new book “A Cowboy’s
Guide to Growing Up
Right.” Learn more at
http://www.nmsantos.com/
Slim! Slim.html.