New safety for player noggins

Lakewood cornerback Braden Smith thought headaches and dizziness were just a part of the game. When he talked with his teammates in practice, though, he realized they weren’t.

A month after Jefferson County School District instituted that every football player in its 17 schools must wear a Guardian Cap during practice to better protect heads, the feedback from players and coaches has been mainly positive a week into the new high school football season.

“I talk to the linebackers and running backs and they say they don’t get headaches after practice like they used to,” Smith said. “I definitely think it’s helped in that regard.”

Jeffco became the first county in the nation to use the Guardian Cap across all its district schools, marketing it to parents, coaches and players as an almost blanket-like helmet cover “made of stiffness and absorbing material” that reduces impact “up to 33 percent.”

“One of our schools has tried this in the past with great success, as have other schools, and if we can help reduce the impact to our players, it’s a positive move,” Jeffco Schools’ Athletic Director Jim Thyfault said in a press release.

After four weeks, many coaches around the county believe it has “mostly helped.”

“Some of the kids say it is a little hot on their heads, but besides that I think it has been good,” Lakewood coach Jeff Braun said. “We’re happy with it.”

One concern was that it would give players a false sense of safety, perhaps hurting high school football’s focus on decreasing helmet-to-helmet hits.

But Golden coach Jason Neely said the cap didn’t affect his players’ technique in a 21-0 loss to Littleton on Friday.

“I didn’t see any changes to the way we played,” he said. “You still play the way you are taught and I think that is the most important thing.”

The $ 59.95 price tag for the cap, however, will be a tough sell for many programs, some coaches said, especially for something they believe should only be used in practices and not games.

“It’s not a cheap investment,” Braun said.

For players in Jeffco, though, the cap may keep them a little safer for now.

Smith, who wants to play Division I football for either Air Force or Wyoming next fall, said he hopes player safety continues to be football’s top priority.

“I hope something like this catches on at the college level,” he said. “Anything to keep guys from getting head injuries is a positive in my opinion.”

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