Prep Football Player Dies

A 17-year-old high school football player died shortly after collapsing during a game, according to the Associated Press. Fermin Vialpando, a 6-foot-1, 210-pound center for Harrison High School in Colorado Springs, Colorado, was running down the field in the third quarter Friday night when he collapsed. Vialpando, a senior, tried to call a huddle just before he collapsed, Harrison cornerback Miki Eltagonde said. "He was running down the field and he just stopped and fell. He tried getting up and then fell back again and it happened again," Eltagonde said. A teammate yelled to coaches that Vialpando was having a seizure, and the game was halted. A doctor was on the field within a minute, athletic director Dave Hogan said. Vialpando died at a hospital.

I find stories like this very sad. A 17-year-old kid has so much life left and when someone so young dies, it is a tragedy. In recent years, I have heard more stories about high school athletes dying in the middle of games. In small towns in the South, high school football is a way of life for these towns. Friday nights are dedicated to high school football in Texas, Alabama, Mississippi, etc. I wonder if some of these kids are being overworked by their tough love coaches. I think that high school football is a good thing to bring these small communities together, but that these kids realize that they are just kids and have fun playing, not hurting themselves to please their coaches.