SEC adds ‘independent medical observer’ to football games
The SEC passed a regulation Tuesday requiring the conference to have an “independent medical observer” watch out for head injuries at all football games involving SEC teams.
“We’ll put a trained medical person up in the replay booth,” outgoing SEC commissioner Mike Slive said. “It will give us another check in the event that on the field a team doesn’t see someone who may have had a head injury.
“Most of the time the sideline picks up those kind of things, but just in case they don’t … we’re doing everything we can to protect the health and safety of our students.”
The observer will be given the authority to stop the game and have the injured player leave the field, Slive said.
About the Author
Tim Tucker, a long-time AJC sports reporter, often writes about the business side of the games. He also had stints as the AJC's Braves beat writer, UGA beat writer, sports notes columnist and executive sports editor. He was deputy managing editor of America's first all-sports newspaper, The National Sports Daily.
