Indiana quarterback quitting football: ‘I need my brain’

November 29, 2016 / FootballSports Medicine
Indiana’s appearance in a college football bowl game later this month will be the last for Hoosiers backup quarterback Zander Diamont.

Football3The junior announced over the weekend that he would quit football at the end of the season, citing concussion fears and the long-term effects jarring hits could have on his brain.

Diamont could have continued his career and played it safe — sliding to avoid tackles, running out of bounds — but he didn’t want to commit to the game if he could commit to playing it the right way.

From the Indianapolis Star:

“That’s just not my style and if I’m going to go out, I’m going to go out my way,” he said, later adding, “I think that for my safety and my future – I’m not going to the NFL – I need my brain. So that was the decision.”

Football has meant a lot of different things to Diamont. He said the sport has always been an outlet for him. It’s been rewarding. It has taught him life lessons.

“This game is life and I couldn’t be more grateful for the growth it’s brought me,” Diamont said.

In 2015, San Francisco 49ers linebacker Chris Borland abruptly walked away from the NFL after just one season. The 24-year-old similarly cited concerns over head injuries, more specifically CTE, as the catalyst for his decision.

Diamont was unsure of exactly how many concussions he has suffered over his career but said there were “a lot” in high school.

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