Gjere is ending his football career due to the return of concussion-like symptoms

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Gopher Warrior said:
Bob, I think you've got bad information. This isn't an area I'm extremely familiar with, so if there's some good reason for your thinking I'd love to learn.

I think the key thing to know is that there is such a thing as a medical noncounter. In essence, if docs want to document that a player's condition is such that it appears they will not be able to play football again, there is relief provided by the NCAA in that a school can put the player on what could be described as a medical scholarship. That is, a grant-in-aid package that is similar to a football scholarship, but that will not be counted against the available scholarships for the team.

The "relief" that the NCAA provides is just that the player won't be counted against the max football scholarship limit. There is no "NCAA injured players' scholarship fund" that I'm aware of - if a school wants to keep taking care of the injured-student's aid, they can - their choice (or, in some cases soon, perhaps a state government's choice). The "medical scholarships" can be renewed each year (scholarships are for one year, though, so it's not at all automatic and can be dependent on institution-specific rules) if satisfactory progress and other conditions (if applicable) are met.

I believe that if there is a change in circumstances (i.e., docs say he can give it a go and he wants to), he can in the future. Let's say.. next year he decides he wants to try again.. starts practicing... then his "medical scholarship" would become a counter / normal athletic scholarship for purposes of the max.

The simple way to put this is Minnesota can continue to keep him on scholarship if certain minimal requirements are met (i.e., progress towards degree, etc) and not have it count against the football scholarship limit. Doing so does not close the door on his ability to play college football again one day.

For Gjere it must be a very difficult decision. Hopefully he'll still be able to be involved / around the guys, but most importantly hopefully the injury doesn't continue to affect his life significantly for years to come.
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Oh great, I'm debating the intracities of the rules of the NCAA with GopherWarrior again...JK. I actually appreciate the information and like anything with the NCAA, I could definitely be wrong. You seem to have a pretty good handle of the rules, so I'll just walk you through what I thought and you can tell me where I am wrong.

It seems like our disagreement comes down to who foots the bill, and I could be wrong. I remember reading about an NCAA Fund for Medical Non-Counters. I might not have a full grasp of the fund, I can't remember the exact name, but it's something like the NCAA Special Financial Fund and it can be used for a variety of things and one of them is for a player who is a medical non-counter.

So to my understanding, the NCAA fund covers a large portion (or the whole) portion of the student's scholarship.

I think we agree on the important part of the discussion: Gjere will continue to go to school for free and it won't count against the U's scholarship count. Right?
 

Sad news. Hope he recovers. Cases like this make you wonder if those who think football will be dead in 20 years could be right
 


Too bad, but in the large scope of things, there's a lot more to life than football. Best of luck Jimmy.
 

ndsugopherfan said:
please dont think this is big smack, Gjere was a beast in HS and he will be missed, feel sorry for the kid. however, how the heck did Tim Brewster not offer NDSU's 6 6 317 OT Billy Turner from Mounds View. I just dont understand, I know there was a preferred walk on offer, but geez louise!
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Your post has nothing to do with the topic of this thread. If it did, the answer would be "because Gjere was better"
 


ndsugopherfan said:
please dont think this is big smack, Gjere was a beast in HS and he will be missed, feel sorry for the kid. however, how the heck did Tim Brewster not offer NDSU's 6 6 317 OT Billy Turner from Mounds View. I just dont understand, I know there was a preferred walk on offer, but geez louise!
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Why did you just poison this thread? We are talking about a good kid who had to retire from football because of concussion-like symptoms and you post this garbage. Please delete your post as it is totally irrelevant to the topic. Also, when you begin a post with "please dont think this is big smack", that does not mean you can rant totally irrelevant things. I, for one, do not care about Billy Turner. I especially do not care when reading a thread about Jimmy Gjere's retirement.
 


Bob_Loblaw said:
Oh great, I'm debating the intracities of the rules of the NCAA with GopherWarrior again...JK. I actually appreciate the information and like anything with the NCAA, I could definitely be wrong. You seem to have a pretty good handle of the rules, so I'll just walk you through what I thought and you can tell me where I am wrong.

It seems like our disagreement comes down to who foots the bill, and I could be wrong. I remember reading about an NCAA Fund for Medical Non-Counters. I might not have a full grasp of the fund, I can't remember the exact name, but it's something like the NCAA Special Financial Fund and it can be used for a variety of things and one of them is for a player who is a medical non-counter.

So to my understanding, the NCAA fund covers a large portion (or the whole) portion of the student's scholarship.

I think we agree on the important part of the discussion: Gjere will continue to go to school for free and it won't count against the U's scholarship count. Right?
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Almost in agreement :D. I'd say "Gjere may be allowed to go to school for free in coming years and if he is, it would not count against the U's scholarship count so long as medical documentation is deemed sufficient enough to have him qualified as a medical noncounter".

The big difference in our understanding is that I believe it's up to the U of M rather than something that is automatic and that the NCAA pays for. The norm is that a school pays for any aid and annual renewals of "medical scholarships" (as is true with all scholarships) are up to the discretion of the institution. Since it's hard to imagine the U would say, "sorry dude, you don't play for us anymore so we're not paying for your education (or some potentially high cost special health care services)", yes -- you and I are at the same place... should be able to continue on with his education at the U with the cost being covered, but will not be counted against the max scholarships for the football team.

Would be nice to see him as an student assistant that is able to still be involved with practices, etc. if he's up for it. Might be a little depressing at first, but probably helps everyone longer term. (Some) Kids can still help their team even when not playing.
 





I'm too lazy to do the research, but I wonder if there's been a study done that breaks down the concussions in college and the pros and the positions that the players who suffer this injury play. I played on the offensive line (terribly) for my entire football career. It just seems like other than kickers/punters, the offensive linemen would be the least likely to get concussions, but the Gophers have two guys with the problem. Sure, you're getting hit on every single play, but it's rarely a case where you'd butt helmets or hit your head on the ground and it's almost never high speed.
 

Breakin' The Plane said:
I'm too lazy to do the research, but I wonder if there's been a study done that breaks down the concussions in college and the pros and the positions that the players who suffer this injury play. I played on the offensive line (terribly) for my entire football career. It just seems like other than kickers/punters, the offensive linemen would be the least likely to get concussions, but the Gophers have two guys with the problem. Sure, you're getting hit on every single play, but it's rarely a case where you'd butt helmets or hit your head on the ground and it's almost never high speed.
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It's an interesting question and I haven't thought much about it, but:

My sense is that the focus might shift over time - the big knock-a-guy-out-of-the-game hits get the attention now and this might* be why many people tend to think linemen would be pretty safe.

The medical research has a ways to go, but I probably subscribe to the belief that many "lesser" hits over time are causing issues as often as, or more so, than single one-time big hits. That said, linemen might actually be more susceptible to concussion symptoms than a lot of other positions because of the frequency of hits they endure.

Even with improvements in helmets, football is always going to have brains flying around in different directions. That said, I'm not sure a magic helmet or "reasonable" rule changes are going to solve the "concussion problem".
 

I'm just glad to see this concussion thing being taken seriously. Too many times this stuff has been brushed off, guys would be ridiculed for their lack of "toughness" and such. Now Jim can just move on, get that degree, and still have all kinds of success in his life. This sucks right now, cause he looked real legit as a football player, but there's more out there, he'll be alright either way.
 



Best wishes to Jimmy. He is a smart guy and will do just fine in life.
 

Bob_Loblaw said:
Oh great, I'm debating the intracities of the rules of the NCAA with GopherWarrior again...JK. I actually appreciate the information and like anything with the NCAA, I could definitely be wrong. You seem to have a pretty good handle of the rules, so I'll just walk you through what I thought and you can tell me where I am wrong.

It seems like our disagreement comes down to who foots the bill, and I could be wrong. I remember reading about an NCAA Fund for Medical Non-Counters. I might not have a full grasp of the fund, I can't remember the exact name, but it's something like the NCAA Special Financial Fund and it can be used for a variety of things and one of them is for a player who is a medical non-counter.

So to my understanding, the NCAA fund covers a large portion (or the whole) portion of the student's scholarship.

I think we agree on the important part of the discussion: Gjere will continue to go to school for free and it won't count against the U's scholarship count. Right?
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Well, regardless who foots the bill, it is right that players injured from football be covered scholastically according to their scholarship agreement, or even if a walk-on, should receive some benefit, and that another scholarship opens for the football team to fill.
 

Gopher Warrior said:
It's an interesting question and I haven't thought much about it, but:

My sense is that the focus might shift over time - the big knock-a-guy-out-of-the-game hits get the attention now and this might* be why many people tend to think linemen would be pretty safe.

The medical research has a ways to go, but I probably subscribe to the belief that many "lesser" hits over time are causing issues as often as, or more so, than single one-time big hits. That said, linemen might actually be more susceptible to concussion symptoms than a lot of other positions because of the frequency of hits they endure.

Even with improvements in helmets, football is always going to have brains flying around in different directions. That said, I'm not sure a magic helmet or "reasonable" rule changes are going to solve the "concussion problem".
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Football has never been, and will never be, a "safe" sport. If that is what you are looking for, play a different sport. The goal is not to change that aspect, since it cannot be changed. The goal is to make it so concussions and brain trauma are the rare exception rather than the rule. This is where rule changes and helmet technology come in. Nobody is looking for magic, just better technology designed to address some of the problems. Luckily, that technology appears to be in development. I am hopeful in that regard.

The technology, as I wrote about in an earlier post, is designed just as much (if not more) for the small hits as it is for the big ones. The studies that have been done at places like UNC and Virginia Tech look at where the impacts take place so the padding on the inside can be augmented. The softer shell on the outside will also help. Again, this isn't magic, it is science. Anyone looking for a "magic helmet" probably wouldn't play, or let their kids play, football in the first place. That isn't meant to be a shot, but folks looking for a reason to avoid football have never had to look too far. Nothing will ever change that.

The people, like Jimmy, who choose to play the sport know the risks. I, for one, am happy that changes are being implemented and technology is being invented to lessen those risks, even if they will never be eliminated.
 

Best of luck Jimmy. It really hurt to hear that the symptoms have come back. I'm glad he didn't just try to "play through" the symptoms. Very mature decision.
 

Monty519 said:
I'm just glad to see this concussion thing being taken seriously. Too many times this stuff has been brushed off, guys would be ridiculed for their lack of "toughness" and such. Now Jim can just move on, get that degree, and still have all kinds of success in his life. This sucks right now, cause he looked real legit as a football player, but there's more out there, he'll be alright either way.
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Yeah, I am glad that that aspect has sort of changed. I think everyone takes it seriously now and it wasn't that long ago that people would just say "you got your bell rung".
 

Doogie short article on Gjere and coming to terms with his situation:

Homecoming Saturday will have a different meaning for former Gophers starting right tackle Jim Gjere.

For the first time since retiring in August because of post-concussion symptoms, Gjere will be at TCF Bank Stadium to cheer on his former teammates against Northwestern.

I sat down with Gjere on Wednesday afternoon for almost an hour. The Irondale High School product first suffered a concussion in the spring of 2011, then had another one in the loss at Michigan last October.

"I remember walking out to the line on one play (in that game), and I couldn't remember the play," Gjere said. "I turned to my guard and he had to repeat it twice. ... I just wasn't processing it."

With lots of rest, he overcame his 2011 issues and was medically cleared to take part in this year's spring practices and August two-a-days. But it was just five days into fall camp that his symptoms recurred.

"I had no motivation to do anything," Gjere said.

After an emotional talk with his parents and trainers and coaches, he made the decision to walk away.

"I have to find stuff to take mind off of football, because I do miss it," Gjere said. "Every time 3:30 rolls around, I think about the guys at practice. It kills me to not be out there with them."

Gjere got emotional, reminiscing about running through the tunnel onto the TCF Bank Stadium field and the bond he had with his offensive line.

"We've become so tight," Gjere said. "It'll be tough to get that feeling anywhere else."

Gjere has an open invitation to attend practice, but he said it's too hard to. He does see his teammates in the mornings in the players' lounge and is a class-checker -- an extra guy to do anything the coaches and support staff ask of him.

He's still on scholarship, scheduled to graduate in the spring 2014 with a degree in marketing and business.

"I want to be able to brush my teeth when I'm 27," Gjere said, "and if I had taken another hit, who knows what would've happened?"

Gjere's mom will soon be arranging for him to talk to groups about his experience, something he's looking forward to.

He says his athletic career is "on hold," but if something arises, clearly, it'll be a non-contact sport. He was a star pitcher in high school, so could see himself asking baseball coach John Anderson for a tryout. But he first said he needs to be fully symptom-free.
 

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