George Visger

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George Visger
George Visger - B.R.A.I.N..jpg
Visger at Brain Rehabilitation And Injury Network (B.R.A.I.N.) on November 8, 2013
No. 63
Position: Defensive tackle
Personal information
Born: (1958-09-26) September 26, 1958 (age 65)
Stockton, California, U.S.
Height:6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Weight:250 lb (113 kg)
Career information
College: Colorado
NFL draft: 1980  / Round: 6 / Pick: 149
Career history
 * Offseason and/or practice squad member only
Career highlights and awards
Player stats at PFR

George Anthony Visger (born September 26, 1958) is a former professional American football player who played defensive line for the San Francisco 49ers. [1]

Contents

Early life

Visger began playing Pop Warner football at age 11 for the West Stockton Bear Cubs. At age 13, during his 3rd year of Pop Warner, he was hospitalized after knocking himself out in a Bull-In-The-Ring drill. After winning two championships in Pop Warner, he went on to play at A.A. Stagg High in Stockton, CA where they won two championships and went 20-1-1 including 11-0 and ranked #3 in CA during his two years on the varsity. Visger was selected to the 1975 Top 100 High School All-American team. [2] [3]

From 1976 to 1979, Visger attended the University of Colorado on a football scholarship, where he majored in Fisheries Biology and made the traveling squad as a true freshman. Under head coach Bill Mallory, Colorado won the 1976 Big Eight Championship and played Ohio State in the 1977 Orange Bowl. Visger was a three-year starter, earning honorable mention for All Big Eight and the Regiment Award in 1979.

Two weeks before the 1980 draft, Visger unknowingly fractured his sacral 8 vertebrae and played his entire rookie season with a broken back.

Career

Early career

In 1980, Visger was selected by the New York Jets in the 6th round of the NFL draft, ultimately playing with the San Francisco 49ers in 1980 and 1981. Visger sustained a major concussion in the first quarter of a Dallas game in 1980, yet he played the entire game by clearing his head with smelling salts each time he came off the field.

Early in the following 1981 season, Visger underwent his first knee surgery. Several weeks later, he developed hydrocephalus from concussions and underwent emergency VP shunt brain surgery. Four months after their Super Bowl XVI victory, Visger underwent two additional brain surgeries 10 hours apart and was given last rites. In 1984, he required two additional knee surgeries, including an experimental Gore-Tex ACL transplant to repair damage sustained during the 1981 season. [4]

Visger returned to school to complete his biology degree in 1986. He survived five additional emergency VP Shunt brain surgeries and several gran mal seizures in 1987 while enrolled in Chemistry and Physics courses and earning a Class B General Contractor's license. In 1990, he graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Biological Conservation, despite developing dyslexia and major short-term memory deficits from his surgeries and seizure medications. Visger began his career as a wildlife biologist-environmental consultant in 1990 and has now survived nine emergency VP shunt brain surgeries.

Post career

Visger has become a well-known expert on traumatic brain injuries (TBI). In 2010, he founded The Visger Group, a TBI consulting organization with the goal of raising the awareness of TBI in a variety of venues, including football, injured military veterans, and pediatric groups.

Visger has been featured on NPR, CNN, CBS Evening News, ESPN Outside The Lines, Slate Magazine, and specials in London, England, and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. He consults directly with Dr. Rich Ellenbogen of the NFL Head, Neck, and Spine Injury Group on rule changes to reduce TBI in football. Many of Visger's suggestions have been implemented to date.

Visger has recommended NFL rule changes to address the issue. [5]

Visger also conducts motivational seminars, is writing a full-length biography, and co-authored an eBook memoir with Irv Muchnick, Out of My Head; My Life In and Out of Football, which was published on January 30, 2012.

Outside the Lines featured Visger chronicling his life after football and getting through his day-to-day routine after his nine brain surgeries. Visger is a well-known advocate for all traumatic brain injury survivors, has presented at Congressional hearings on TBI, the Brain Injury Association annual conferences, and coordinates with the California Community Colleges Disabled Student Program Services and Veterans Resource Centers. Sacramento California, for a congressional hearing about traumatic brain injuries. [6]

Visger is featured in Todd Trigsted's upcoming movie, Gladiators: The Uncertain Future of American Football . Doug Cosbie (Dallas Cowboys 1979–1988) and associates began filming Visger's autobiographic documentary An NFL Brain Injury and Recovery in April 2013. [7]

Visger has spoken about his story and the TBI crisis in the NFL at numerous organizations nationwide including the Brain Rehabilitation And Injury Network (B.R.A.I.N.), a non-profit organization that advocates for adults with brain injuries. [8]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Head injury</span> Serious trauma to the cranium

A head injury is any injury that results in trauma to the skull or brain. The terms traumatic brain injury and head injury are often used interchangeably in the medical literature. Because head injuries cover such a broad scope of injuries, there are many causes—including accidents, falls, physical assault, or traffic accidents—that can cause head injuries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Concussion</span> Medical condition

A concussion, also known as a mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI), is a head injury that temporarily affects brain functioning. Symptoms may include loss of consciousness; memory loss; headaches; difficulty with thinking, concentration, or balance; nausea; blurred vision; dizziness; sleep disturbances, and mood changes. Any of these symptoms may begin immediately, or appear days after the injury. Concussion should be suspected if a person indirectly or directly hits their head and experiences any of the symptoms of concussion. Symptoms of a concussion may be delayed by 1–2 days after the accident. It is not unusual for symptoms to last 2 weeks in adults and 4 weeks in children. Fewer than 10% of sports-related concussions among children are associated with loss of consciousness.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Traumatic brain injury</span> Injury of the brain from an external source

A traumatic brain injury (TBI), also known as an intracranial injury, is an injury to the brain caused by an external force. TBI can be classified based on severity ranging from mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI/concussion) to severe traumatic brain injury. TBI can also be characterized based on mechanism or other features. Head injury is a broader category that may involve damage to other structures such as the scalp and skull. TBI can result in physical, cognitive, social, emotional and behavioral symptoms, and outcomes can range from complete recovery to permanent disability or death.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pop Warner Little Scholars</span> American non-profit organization

Pop Warner Little Scholars, commonly known simply as Pop Warner, is a nonprofit organization that provides activities such as American football, for over 425,000 youths aged 5 to 16 years old, in several nations. It is the largest youth football organization in the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Health issues in American football</span> Dangers to the health of athletes participating in American football

Health issues in American football comprise a large number of health risks associated with participating in the sport. Injuries are relatively common in American football, due to its nature as a full-contact game. Injuries occur during both practice and games. Several factors can affect the frequency of injuries: epidemiological studies have shown older players can be at a greater risk, while equipment and experienced coaches can reduce the risk of injury. Common injuries include strains, sprains, fractures, dislocations, and concussions. Concussions have become a concern, as they increase the risk of mental illnesses like dementia and chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE). In individual leagues like the National Football League (NFL) and National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), a public injury report is published containing all injured players on a team, their injury and the game-day status of each player.

Post-concussion syndrome (PCS), also known as persisting symptoms after concussion, is a set of symptoms that may continue for weeks, months, or years after a concussion. PCS is medically classified as a mild traumatic brain injury (TBI). About 35% of people with concussion experience persistent or prolonged symptoms 3 to 6 months after injury. Prolonged concussion is defined as having concussion symptoms for over four weeks following the first accident in youth and for weeks or months in adults.

Toi Fitzgerald Cook is a former professional American football player who was selected by the New Orleans Saints in the eighth round of the 1987 NFL Draft. A 5'11", 188 lb (85 kg). defensive back from Stanford University, he played in 11 NFL seasons from 1987 to 1997. In 1992, he had a career-high six interceptions for 90 yards and one touchdown for the Saints. He appeared in Super Bowl XXIX for the victorious San Francisco 49ers, and had an interception in the game. Before his NFL career, he was an outfielder, and the leadoff hitter, on Stanford's 1987 College World Series national champion baseball team.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chronic traumatic encephalopathy</span> Neurodegenerative disease caused by head injury

Chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) is a neurodegenerative disease linked to repeated trauma to the head. The encephalopathy symptoms can include behavioral problems, mood problems, and problems with thinking. The disease often gets worse over time and can result in dementia.

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The fencing response is an unnatural position of the arms following a concussion. Immediately after moderate forces have been applied to the brainstem, the forearms are held flexed or extended for a period lasting up to several seconds after the impact. The fencing response is often observed during athletic competition involving contact, such as combat sports, American football, ice hockey, rugby union, rugby league and Australian rules football. It is used as an overt indicator of injury force magnitude and midbrain localization to aid in injury identification and classification for events including on-field and/or bystander observations of sports-related head injuries.

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Concussions and play-related head blows in American football have been shown to be the cause of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), which has led to player deaths and other debilitating symptoms after retirement, including memory loss, depression, anxiety, headaches, stress, and sleep disturbances.

Concussions, a type of mild traumatic brain injury, are a frequent concern for those playing sports, from children and teenagers to professional athletes. Repeated concussions are known to cause neurological disorders, particularly chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), which in professional athletes has led to premature retirement, erratic behavior and even suicide. A sports-related concussion is defined as a "complex pathophysiological process affecting the brain, induced by biomechanical forces". Because concussions cannot be seen on X-rays or CT scans, attempts to prevent concussions have been difficult.

A sports-related traumatic brain injury is a serious accident which may lead to significant morbidity or mortality. Traumatic brain injury (TBI) in sports are usually a result of physical contact with another person or stationary object, These sports may include boxing, gridiron football, field/ice hockey, lacrosse, martial arts, rugby, soccer, wrestling, auto racing, cycling, equestrian, rollerblading, skateboarding, skiing or snowboarding.

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References

  1. ↑ George Visger NFL & AFL Football Statistics - Pro-Football-Reference.com
  2. ↑ Hruby, Patrick (April 12, 2023). "OTL; George Visger, The Damage is Done". ESPN. Retrieved April 12, 2023.
  3. ↑ Frommer, Justin (September 10, 2021). "'One big machine': Stagg celebrates 1975 undefeated team". Recordnet.com. Retrieved April 12, 2023.
  4. ↑ MUCHNICK, IRVIN (January 29, 2022). "Football hero: How George Visger survived the NFL and traumatic brain injury — barely". Salon.
  5. ↑ Visger, George (December 16, 2010). "Visger Rules Recommended Changes to NFL Rules". The Sports Digest. Retrieved January 1, 2014.
  6. ↑ "Legislative". Brain Injury Association of California. Archived from the original on December 16, 2013. Retrieved December 16, 2013.
  7. ↑ MADDOX, JASON (August 2, 2013). "Upcoming Film Looks at Future of Football". NRI at Brookhaven Hospital. Retrieved April 12, 2023.
  8. ↑ "B.R.A.I.N." B.R.A.I.N.
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