Concussion Contributes To College Athlete Giving Up Football

Daily Camera

http://www.dailycamera.com/cu-college-sports/ci_23040020/football-kyle-washington-moves-from-cu-buffs

Colorado spring football practices ended Tuesday with another goodbye from a player who has decided to give up the sport rather than risking another concussion.

Linebacker Kyle Washington saw some of his teammates for the first time in weeks at the Dal Ward Center before the last practice of spring. Washington did not participate in spring drills this year because of the lingering effects of concussions he suffered last fall and also because of several other difficult developments in his life.

Washington’s mother, Tammy, suffered a heart attack three weeks ago and underwent open heart surgery. Also, one of Washington’s friends recently died of overdose.

All of those events have taken a toll on him academically this semester in addition to his medical problems. He is leaning toward medically withdrawing from school this spring to avoid any bad marks on his record.

“It’s real hard,” Washington said of the realization that his football career is over. “Everybody comes in with the thought of possibly going to the league and having that taken away from you kind of makes things a lot harder. You kind of sit back and wonder who you are. You kind of lose some status, you lose everything that you thought you had really.”