Injury alters Seifert's 'priorities'
April 10, 2012, 1:31 a.m. EDT
Reading Eagle
Matt Seifert grew up believing he'd play football in college.
He admired older brother Elliott, an offensive lineman at Temple, and figured he'd follow in his footsteps.
One blow to his head in his junior year at Exeter changed the direction of his life.
He suffered a severe concussion and never stepped on a football field again, passing up several Division I offers.
"When that injury happened, it changed my perspective," said the 19-year-old Seifert. "It changed my priorities."
This story ends happily: Seifert turned his focus toward volleyball and earned a partial scholarship to Penn State, where he is currently being redshirted as a freshman.
His tale goes to show that every player, in every sport, is potentially one play from the end. Or a new beginning.
Seifert still can't recall the details of the final football play of his life - and that's what scared him most and led him to leave the sport.
The injury occurred on the practice field in mid-October. He lowered his head to make a tackle, fell to the ground following the collision and didn't get up.
He laid there for several minutes, motionless and unresponsive.
And least that's what he is told.
"The last thing I remember, I was putting my cleats on to get ready for practice," he said. "The next thing I know I wake up in the hospital, hooked up to IVs."
"It wasn't even a jarring hit," recalled his football coach, Matt Bauer.
Research is inconclusive as to why some concussions are worse than others and why some players react differently to them than others.
Statistics reveal that once an athlete suffers a concussion he or she is more likely to suffer another and that further concussions can be more severe. Numerous concussions can lead to memory loss, depression, early on-set dementia - even death.
A Purdue University study of high school football players indicates that concussions are likely caused by many hits over time and not from a single blow to the head, as is commonly believed.
The big bang theory disproved.
"It's really the totality of blows that took place over the season," said Eric Nauman, a Purdue associate professor of mechanical engineering and an expert in central nervous system and musculoskeletal trauma. "The one hit that brought on the concussion is arguably the straw that broke the camel's back."
After such a traumatic experience - one that left him unconscious for several hours and led to weeks of headaches, lapses in concentration and struggles in the classroom - Seifert decided not to wait for another big hit and gave up football.
He could not entirely escape the effects of his first major blow, however.
He was cleared to play basketball his junior season but admits he couldn't play as aggressively as he wanted to because he feared that another hit to the head would sideline him.
"I was scared to get another concussion," he said. "I held myself back. I played a little bit timid."
Even at that he suffered two more concussions that season: He took an elbow to the jaw in a game and was hit in the head at practice while going up for a layup.
A few months later he and his parents informed Bauer that he was done with football.
"As much as I loved football, I knew that wouldn't be a wise decision (to keep playing)," he said.
Bauer agreed.
"In the end, it was the right decision," he said. "Playing football is very precious, (but) kids have to think about the rest of their lives."
Seifert is physically fine now; he said he feels no ill effects from any of his four concussions. He loves volleyball and is enjoying his college experience.
Still, he wonders how things might have turned out had he not suffered that first severe concussion.
"I think about it quite often," he admitted, "more often than I would like to."
Contact Mike Drago: 610-371-5064 or mdrago@readingeagle.com.
He admired older brother Elliott, an offensive lineman at Temple, and figured he'd follow in his footsteps.
One blow to his head in his junior year at Exeter changed the direction of his life.
He suffered a severe concussion and never stepped on a football field again, passing up several Division I offers.
"When that injury happened, it changed my perspective," said the 19-year-old Seifert. "It changed my priorities."
This story ends happily: Seifert turned his focus toward volleyball and earned a partial scholarship to Penn State, where he is currently being redshirted as a freshman.
His tale goes to show that every player, in every sport, is potentially one play from the end. Or a new beginning.
Seifert still can't recall the details of the final football play of his life - and that's what scared him most and led him to leave the sport.
The injury occurred on the practice field in mid-October. He lowered his head to make a tackle, fell to the ground following the collision and didn't get up.
He laid there for several minutes, motionless and unresponsive.
And least that's what he is told.
"The last thing I remember, I was putting my cleats on to get ready for practice," he said. "The next thing I know I wake up in the hospital, hooked up to IVs."
"It wasn't even a jarring hit," recalled his football coach, Matt Bauer.
Research is inconclusive as to why some concussions are worse than others and why some players react differently to them than others.
Statistics reveal that once an athlete suffers a concussion he or she is more likely to suffer another and that further concussions can be more severe. Numerous concussions can lead to memory loss, depression, early on-set dementia - even death.
A Purdue University study of high school football players indicates that concussions are likely caused by many hits over time and not from a single blow to the head, as is commonly believed.
The big bang theory disproved.
"It's really the totality of blows that took place over the season," said Eric Nauman, a Purdue associate professor of mechanical engineering and an expert in central nervous system and musculoskeletal trauma. "The one hit that brought on the concussion is arguably the straw that broke the camel's back."
After such a traumatic experience - one that left him unconscious for several hours and led to weeks of headaches, lapses in concentration and struggles in the classroom - Seifert decided not to wait for another big hit and gave up football.
He could not entirely escape the effects of his first major blow, however.
He was cleared to play basketball his junior season but admits he couldn't play as aggressively as he wanted to because he feared that another hit to the head would sideline him.
"I was scared to get another concussion," he said. "I held myself back. I played a little bit timid."
Even at that he suffered two more concussions that season: He took an elbow to the jaw in a game and was hit in the head at practice while going up for a layup.
A few months later he and his parents informed Bauer that he was done with football.
"As much as I loved football, I knew that wouldn't be a wise decision (to keep playing)," he said.
Bauer agreed.
"In the end, it was the right decision," he said. "Playing football is very precious, (but) kids have to think about the rest of their lives."
Seifert is physically fine now; he said he feels no ill effects from any of his four concussions. He loves volleyball and is enjoying his college experience.
Still, he wonders how things might have turned out had he not suffered that first severe concussion.
"I think about it quite often," he admitted, "more often than I would like to."
Contact Mike Drago: 610-371-5064 or mdrago@readingeagle.com.
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