Air Force football coach sends QB into game with apparent concussion

Air Force football won the first service academy matchup of the year, but not before head coach Troy Calhoun puts his quarterback at great risk.

The Air Force Falcons hosted the Navy Midshipmen in the first game between two service academies this season. The majority of the game was dominated by Air Force with the game ending in a score of 35-7. However, this was not the biggest story of the game.

In the first quarter, Air Force quarterback, D. J. Hammond, was hit hard in the head after a short run. There appeared to have been a flag on the field for a block in the back on the Falcon offense. However, after Hammond was unable to move, things got much more serious. Confusingly, a targeting call was made by the referees and the play was reviewed.

The targeting call was one you expect to see in the NFL, on an offensive player. The played looked to be clean since the quarterback lowered his body to gain a few more yards on the play, just as the defensive player lowered his body to make the tackle.  As Hammond lowered his head, there was incidental contact from the linebacker, Taylor Heflin.

Had either player not lowered their body, there would not the have been a foul on the play. Heflin was ejected from the game after the call was confirmed. Frankly, the play looked much different in slow motion than it did in real-time.

Even though Navy lost its most impactful defensive player early in the game, this questionable targeting call still isn’t what was referred to as the biggest story of the game.

Air Force quarterback, D. J. Hammond III, was down on the field, not moving and unresponsive for over 40 seconds after the hit. After slowly getting up, Hammond was helped of the field, struggling to move under his own power. A reasonable person would conclude Hammond had just gotten a concussion and should be done playing for the day, at the very least.

Apparently, Air Force coach, Troy Calhoun, didn’t come to that conclusion. Isiah Sanders entered the game for the Falcons, and was unable to make any offensive production. Hammond had no business being back in the game, but only a short time later, he was back under center. Coach Calhoun was clearly disregarding the safety of his quarterback for the sake of winning the game.

Poor leadership by Calhoun

In the NFL, players are paid to play football. It is their job to be on the field. This is not the case with college football players, especially ones who are committed to serving the country.

Calhoun is not simply a college football coach, he is a representative of the Air Force academy and therefore, the military as a whole. The service academies are often referred to as “leadership laboratories” since students are constantly practicing their leadership in school, while also learning and observing leadership from the staff at the school.

Service academy staff’s are comprised of both active duty military members and civilians. These staff member staff are all expected to embody the highest characteristics of a leader. Calhoun set a terrible example of a leader by unnecessarily risking the safety of a young man for the sake of a football game.

Concussions are dangerous

The current state of the Air Force team is 2-3. However the state of Hammond’s health is unknown. After a concussion, each successive blow to the head is compounding to the injury and extremely dangerous. This is why players are always out for the entire rest of the game and often, multiple weeks. Literally, death is a possibility, and has happened just recently.

Concussions can occur from one big hit to the head, or a series of smaller blows. However, as players get more concussions, the long-term effects become more and more severe.  Head injuries are not like other injuries. You can’t play on the injury.

Football is developing into a much safer game for the sake of its players. Yes, maybe less entertaining, but it’s better than what the lasting effects are on some football players and possibility of CTE (Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy).

Personal Note

Of course, I’m not a doctor and I did not evaluate D. J. Hammond. However, I was a college football athlete and have had concussions before. So I can tell you from personal experience that you can’t rely upon a player to pull themselves out of the game. Players are too competitive, especially in a rivalry game like this one, and need to be protected from themselves. And the burden rests on the head coach. Calhoun needs to be held accountable for the danger in which he put Hammond.