The Home Depot NFL Youth Coach of the Year
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The NFL and The Home Depot are teaming up and asking Canadian university football players to nominate The Home Depot NFL Youth Coach of the Year.
If a football coach from your high school or community has had a positive impact on you and the game of football, you can give them the recognition they deserve by nominating for this honour and give back to your football roots all at the same time. Prizes will be awarded to the top ten selected coaches which include $5,000 in football equipment for the program, a $1,000 The Home Depot gift card for football program renovations, a trip to the Vanier Cup in Quebec City where the winning coach will be honoured at the annual CIS coaches breakfast, as well as $2,000 in football equipment and a $500 gift card from The Home Depot.
To nominate your high school or community coach, simply visit www.nflcanada.com
and look for the nomination form under the ‘Programs’ section of the website. The deadline for submissions is Monday, November 5, 2009.
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“Cover Your Cough”
H1N1 (Swine Flu) concerns heading
into the season
The fervor surrounding the H1N1 flu (swine flu) may have died down in recent months but sports clubs and athletes are reminded to be diligent in their prevention practices as training camps and seasons are starting to get underway.
Many U.S. college athletic teams have already begun to feel the effects of the H1N1 flu as their seasons get underway including Tulane’s football team – who were forced to cancel a fan event – and Duke’s football team – who recently positively diagnosed 15 players as well as 70 middle-and-high school students who had attended summer camps at the university. Even athletes at the professional level have not managed to escape unscathed. Vincente Padilla, a pitcher for the MLB Texas Rangers, and Landon Donovan, a forward with the MLS LA Galaxy, are among the more high-profile individuals to have received a positive diagnosis. The NFL Miami Dolphins also recently had concerns that two of their players may have contracted the virus.
H1N1 Flu can spread from person-to-person in much the same way as the seasonal flu spreads – mainly through coughing or sneezing by infected individuals. People may become infected by touching something with flu viruses or germs and then touching their mouth or nose. Athletes, particularly at the collegiate level, are more susceptible to the virus for a variety of reasons including the fact they have yet to build immunity to the flu strain and that they tend to share dorm rooms, cafeterias and locker rooms. The good news is that these cases tend to be mild and the affected individuals tend to get better without treatment.
Athletes are reminded to avoid sharing towels with others, cover your nose and mouth with a tissue when you cough or sneeze, wash your hands often with soap and water, avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth, and try to avoid contact with sick people. Most importantly, if you feel ill, make sure to speak up and not hide your condition.
If you get sick, it is recommended that you stay at home and limit your contact with others. If you begin to have flu-like symptoms, contact your doctor immediately.
Football BC reminds all Clubs and Teams to make hand washing a priority and to have hand sanitizers available in your club houses, change rooms, and concession stands. We will be sending out a reminder poster this week that you can post in all areas to remind players, coaches, and fans the importance of prevention.
For more information, visit the BC Centre for Disease Control website or the
National Athletic Trainers’ Association
website.
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BC Lions coach Buono ties
CFL mark
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Football BC would like to congratulate BC Lions GM and Head Coach Wally Buono for recording his 231st victory as a CFL head coach on Friday, September 4th and tying the all-mark wins record by a CFL head coach set by former Lions bench boss Don Matthews.
Buono reached the milestone mark after his Lions squad defeated the Montreal Alouettes 19-12 at BC Place on Friday night and has his first opportunity to take sole possession of first place on the all-time wins list when the Lions and Alouettes do battle again on Sunday in Montreal.
Buono’s record-tying achievement came against the same team which Matthews initially established the benchmark with. Matthews’ last victory came during the 2006 season as the head coach of the Montreal Alouettes. Matthews’ most recent stint in the CFL was as a mid-season replacement behind the bench of the Toronto Argonauts in 2008 but he was unable to increase his all-time wins total during that time.
Buono and the BC Lions are avid supporters of amateur football in British Columbia. The Lions help raise funds for amateur football through the annual Orange Helmet Awards Dinner and raises funds for the BCFC (Junior Football) through the 50/50 draw at each BC Lions home game. Football BC and the BC Lions also collaborate on numerous amateur football programs each year including Play with the Pros and the Senior Bowl.
Through the Saint Bernard Pass Charitable Foundation, Canada’s top junior football player is recognized through the Wally Buono Award. The award is the only national award that recognizes all junior football players throughout Canada and is presented to an individual who not only possesses athletic and leadership abilities on the field but also a high level of leadership within the community. Past recipients of the award include former UBC Thunderbird and current CFLer Chris Ciezki and the late Jeff Halvorson, formerly of the Okanagan Sun Junior Football Club.
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Keeping football
‘cool’
Schools in Lake County, Ohio used a very simple solution for a very serious problem this past summer. All public and private high schools made children’s wading pools a part of their summer practices as a way to protect their football players from heatstroke. The pools are filled with cool water, parked in the shade with ice nearby, and provide an opportunity for a player to be fast-chilled if they become overheated. To read more,
click
here.
On a related note, researchers at the Atlanta-based HotHead Technologies Inc. are looking to introduce a new heat-sensing technology into football helmets that may give coaches the opportunity to know if a player’s temperature rises above normal. The system, called Heat observation Technology (HOT) measures the temperature of a player’s temporal artery and release an audible warning if it detects over-heating. The technology is currently undergoing field testing and is hoping to hit the mass market by next spring. For more information,
click here.
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visit our website
to find a full archive of previously published newsletters.
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