In Pennsylvania: Trying to Make Football Injury-Free

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Palmerton rolls up two more touchdowns, taking advantage of its average 25-lb. weight advantage on the line and a new razzle-dazzle shotgun formation. Palmerton's big fullback drags tacklers along like reluctant dance partners. Unable to earn a first down, the Bears are forced to punt again and again. Dr. Verbruggen shakes his head and looks grim. "See No. 24 there," he says. "He's going to hurt his hand. He's cold, and he's rubbing them between every play. That means he can't coordinate them well, and he'll end up jamming a finger or getting stepped on." True to prediction, Defensive Back Alan Johnson's right hand is raked by a cleat. At halftime, Verbruggen has to treat him for a bruise and deep scrape.

Johnson's hurt hand and a lineman's bruised leg are the only injuries during the first half. Trailing 19-0, the team clumps into the school cafeteria. Nobody mentions bruises, but the coaches spot trouble and call Verbruggen. "I get tremendous cooperation from the coaches. Sometimes they don't let a kid play even after I think he's fit. I agreed to be team physician on the condition that my word was final in keeping a boy out. But I never expected to have trouble getting a kid in."

In the second half, Pleasant Valley controls the game, driving inside Palmerton's 20-yd. line, but fails to score. Late in the third period, a touchdown pass is called back when an official spots an ineligible receiver downfield. "We need a touchdown," Dr. Verbruggen growls. But he wants the Bears to score for a special reason. "When kids get discouraged, their reflexes aren't sharp. They run at somebody halfheartedly. That's when they get hurt. It's even worse with younger kids. If it were up to me, I would eliminate all peewee and junior high school football. If you break or damage the growth plates of the bones at that age, the boy could end up with one arm or leg shorter than the other."

Pleasant Valley has another touchdown nullified by a minor penalty, but in the game's closing seconds, a third touchdown pass by the Bears' 140-lb. sophomore quarterback stays on the Scoreboard. The final score: Palmerton 19, Pleasant Valley 7. Yet it is not until Dr. Verbruggen follows the Bears into the locker room and makes a final check on the night's bumps and bruises that he is sure all his conditioning has paid off. There are no injuries that won't pretty well heal over the weekend. "Football is a game that can be played hard and well without injuries," says Verbruggen as he closes his black bag. "Tonight I'm happy." -B.J. Phillips