Study: 1 in 4 NFL players will contract a brain disease. How does this impact Maine high school football?
A new analysis of former National Football League players has reignited national conversation about brain safety in the sport, even as Maine high school coaches insist they’ve been prioritizing player well‑being for more than a decade. A study published last month in the BMJ found chronic traumatic encephalopathy in 215 of 235 former NFL players who died between 2016 and 2021— roughly 91 percent—underscoring a stark link between repetitive head impacts and the progressive brain disease. The research, led by Dr. Daniel Daneshvar, also estimated that at minimum one in four NFL players will contract CTE, though the rate could be higher; earlier studies have reported similarly high percentages, though researchers acknowledge the figures may reflect a bias toward brain donation when disease is suspected.
The timing of the study has given the numbers extra urgency. The mean age at death of the players examined was 66.5 years, meaning many had decades of play behind them—often in an era when helmets were viewed as weapons, big hits were glorified on shows like ESPN’s “Jacked Up,” and concussion protocols were all but nonexistent. Today, the NFL’s collective bargaining agreement strictly limits contact during practices, but Charlotte Luster, a co‑author of the BMJ paper, points out that those safeguards haven’t filtered down to younger levels. “We have not seen that trickle down to lower levels of football,” she said.
For Maine’s high school teams, the study’s findings land against a backdrop of long‑standing local habits. Kevin Kezal, who has led Thornton Academy to seven Class A championships since 2012, says his program suits up in full pads for just one practice each year—literally the day before the first scrimmage, just to ensure equipment fits. Joel Stoneton, entering his 31st season as head coach and athletic director at Class D champion Winthrop, says safety has been a core principle throughout his tenure. “In the state of Maine, this is the norm. There are a lot more safety protocols. In my opinion, it is safer now through improvements in equipment, the protocols, and what coaches are doing.”
That sentiment is shared across the state. Dylan Rottkov, in his first year coaching Portland High, says he’s witnessed virtually no helmet‑to‑helmet collisions in practice. “I think I’ve seen one helmet collision in a practice this season and it was accidental,” he said. Coaches have spent years emphasizing technique over collision: walking through tackling form without taking players to the ground, avoiding drills that court unnecessary impact, and emphasizing “taking the head out of the game.” The Oklahoma Drill and similar high‑contact exercises, once common nationwide, have been absent from Maine practice fields for generations, in no small part because smaller rosters made the risk of losing players prohibitive. “Honestly, I don’t think we did drills like that back at Livermore Falls in the ’90s because we had about 30 players and couldn’t afford to lose anybody in practice,” Kezal recalled.
The sport’s governing body recently added its voice to the caution. This July, the National Federation of State High School Associations put out guidance recommending the elimination of several heavy‑contact drills, including one‑on‑one strength tests in confined areas, blocking and tackling drills where players start more than four yards apart, and the infamous Oklahoma Drill. The NFHS statement, posted on the Maine Principals’ Association website, is advisory, not mandatory—but Maine coaches say the practices it warns against were already largely gone.
“Honestly, I don’t think we did drills like (the Oklahoma Drill) back at Livermore Falls in the ’90s because we had about 30 players and couldn’t afford to lose anybody in practice,” Kezal said.
Today’s players are also getting more tools. Some helmets, including those worn this season by Winthrop/Monmouth/Hall‑Dale, carry impact sensors that send real‑time warnings to athletic trainers and coaches. Guardian caps—extra padded layers attached to the exterior of helmets—are increasingly visible at practices and games across Maine. Portland High receiver/defensive back Maddox Meas says she started wearing one after noticing she’d get a little dizzy after head‑first falls. “Sometimes the worst impact is when your head hits the ground,” she said. “My mom also wants to make sure I don’t get hurt.” Whether the caps actually reduce impact levels is debated, but players say the added layer provides peace of mind.
Understanding what actually drives CTE has become a central focus for researchers and coaches alike. Luster emphasizes that the disease is caused by repetitive head impacts, not isolated concussions—a crucial distinction for high school players. “Ninety‑two percent of football players stop playing in high school. We’re not able to say 1 in 4 high school players will develop CTE. That’s not what we’re studying,” she said. “But the exposure of repetitive hits that these NFL players absorbed did not begin when they started playing in the NFL.” One prior analysis from Daneshvar’s team found the odds of getting CTE increase 21 percent with every additional 1,000 head hits; another showed risk climbs with each additional year playing football. Dr. Chris Lutrzykowski of Maine General Health, the medical liaison advisor to the MPA Sports Medicine Committee, puts it plainly: “At this point, there is no ‘established threshold at which risk of CTE is clearly defined.’ However, the available data indicates that, when it comes to head impacts, frequency and duration matter.” His prescription mirrors what Maine coaches have long practiced: “reducing the number and amount of time devoted to contact can reduce the number of head impacts considerably.”
Player perspectives illustrate how the message is filtering down. Dom Huntington, a two‑way lineman for Portland High, says he doesn’t believe he’s absorbed a significant head impact on the field. Still, learning that more than 90 percent of examined NFL brains show CTE damage is “a little scary.” Both he and Meas were quick to separate their experience from the professional level. “Those guys play a lot more, their whole life,” Huntington said. “They practice hard. They go to those big colleges and stuff, so I feel like they’re way more at risk than a high school player. And on our team we don’t have anyone who is going to the NFL, realistically. It doesn’t scare me personally.”
Still, the concern lingers. Meas, who hopes to function normally through college and her career, carries the Guardian cap as one layer of protection. “I want to be able to go to school after high school, be able to get a good job, just to be able to still function normally,” she said.
The conversation has also prompted some coaches to propose structural changes. Joel Stoneton’s most provocative suggestion is to eliminate tackle football before middle school. “No tackle football until middle school. At the earliest,” he said. His reasoning is twofold: young bodies, he argues, aren’t developmentally ready for the repetitive impacts, and delaying the start could actually boost high school participation by keeping the sport enjoyable. “I’ve seen so many get lit up and it hurt and it didn’t feel good and they decide football’s not for them,” he said.
Whether today’s safety shifts will ultimately translate into lower CTE rates three decades from now remains an open question. Luster acknowledges the uncertainty: “Unfortunately we don’t know yet. It could be lower, but at the same time, players are bigger, faster and stronger.” What is clearer, however, is that the foundation being laid on Maine’s sidelines—limited full‑contact practices, technique‑first coaching, better equipment, and greater awareness—represents a deliberate departure from the past. For a generation of players who may never suit up at the professional level, those changes may be the most important game they ever play.
