Indiana Schools Report 1,200 Athlete Concussions

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — The Indiana High School Athletic Association says schools reported more than 1,200 concussions among athletes taking part in the five-month fall sports season.

The IHSAA says football players suffered nearly 70 percent of the reported 1,219 concussions, followed by girls and boys soccer players.

This is the first year of the IHSAA's voluntary system for reporting concussions, so the group doesn't have any comparison figures. Concussion reports were submitted by 189 of the association's 410 schools.

IHSAA Commissioner Bobby Cox tells WRTV that more attention is needed on girls soccer and basketball since those sports are being played faster and without head protection.

Cox tells WTHR-TV he was surprised by some cases, such as swimmers suffering concussions from hitting their heads on pool walls.