High school football team trains with mechanical help
OCEAN CITY >> It weighs 195 pounds and can run 20 miles per hour.
It’s not a Division I football recruit, but rather a motorized padded tackling dummy for players to learn safe tackling techniques.
Earlier this season, the Ocean City High School football team unveiled the dummy in hopes of making the game a little safer.
The dummy helps reduce head injuries from unnecessary helmet-to-helmet collisions and allows players to tackle at game speed, according to Ocean City coach Kevin Smith.
Around the country football teams at all levels are looking at ways to make the game safer as concerns about concussions continue to increase.
“We got it because we thought it could reduce some of the wear and tear on our players throughout the course of the season,” he said. “You can’t do certain drills live because of the risk of injury against your teammates, so we kind of plugged in the dummy in those scenarios, and it allows us do those things that we normally couldn’t do.”
The Red Raiders have been using the dummy as they prepare for their annual Thanksgiving game against Pleasantville.
And it feels like tackling an actual player, said junior defenders Chris Armstrong and Jaden Rogers.
Both compared it to an opposing running back.
“It is really cool to use,” said Rogers, 17, of Ocean City. “We use it a lot, mainly for special teams, but it is this fast thing that gets around the field. It is just a nice thing to have for our team to use and a very nice resource.”
Smith originally learned about the mechanical dummy from Superintendent Kathleen Taylor. Smith, being an advocate for safety in football, jumped at the opportunity.
It has been beneficial. “I think the future of football is going to be one where a lot of concern is on the health and safety of the players,” Smith said. “I think football is safer than it’s ever been because of things like this and the guarding helmets and even the helmet technology, so it is trending in the right direction.”
The Red Raiders mainly utilize the dummy on special teams drills — lining up in punt and kick formation, and running downfield to tackle the dummy, which is made by Rogers Athletic Company in Farwell, Michigan.
The Mobile Virtual Player Drive, which costs around $8,000, is seen as a member of the team.