Precautions Are the New Badges of Toughness

Eleven pro, college and high school football players died this year after participating in pre-season drills, which were often conducted at full speed, in sweltering heat.

Even the precautions sound scary. The Washington Post’s Amy Shipley found John Lawson, an offensive tackle at Virginia, hooked up to an intravenous drip after practice, to replenish fluids.

During a 13-day stretch of two-a-day practices, Lawson received 33 IVs.

“It’s all about being a man,” Lawson said. “Being tough.”

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The Man Show: Of course, the men in charge can sound scarier.

“You have to be physically tough on them,” Seneca Valley (Md.) High Coach Terry Changuris, who has coached nine state champions, told The Post. “You have to push them to the brink and either they are going to break or they are going to stand up and be a man. That’s how you change young boys into being men ....

“Once the season starts--this will come across wrong--but [football] actually takes the No. 1 priority over their families .... You have to be willing to inflict pain on others and you have to be willing to push yourself or have someone push you beyond normal boundaries.”

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Trivia question: Who is the only football coach with an overall losing record at Notre Dame?

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On the bright side: Kentucky football fans, invited to watch a preseason practice and meet new Coach Guy Morriss, were upset when the event started late and the public address system broke down.

The fans were also barred from the field, which had a new surface, and herded into a stadium concourse to get autographs from players. One fan said he left for fear of losing his grandchildren in the crush.

“Usually you do get a nice breeze in the concourse,” UK associate director of athletics Kyle Moats told the Lexington Herald-Leader. “But the [fans] who say it was too crowded, I agree with them. We could have done better. And we will make some changes next year ....

“We’ve gotten a lot of feedback and that’s good.”

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Short honeymoon: Arizona Diamondback attendance has fallen annually in the first three seasons, despite the team’s success. Even now, with the D-backs in first place, enthusiasm lags.

“I think we get good crowds,” first baseman Mark Grace told the Arizona Republic. “But I would love to see fans get on their feet in the second and third innings, not just with two outs in the ninth ....

“[Bank One Ballpark] is a big place. Maybe too big.”

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Really, golf is simple: Janet Gillen, from Fremont, Neb., celebrated her 80th birthday recently with her ninth hole-in-one.

It was the fourth time she aced the 113-yard 17th hole at Fremont Golf Club. So what is her secret?

“You just go up there and hit the ball,” Gillen said.

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Trivia answer: Joe Kuharich, who went 17-23 from 1959 through 1962.

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And finally: Noting published reports that Dallas Cowboy owner Jerry Jones had lost 40 pounds and undergone cosmetic surgery, ESPN.com ran before and after pictures and asked visitors to its site which look they preferred.

You guessed it, 74% said they liked the old look.