Preseason baseline brain testing remains optional under UHSAA rules governing Corner Canyon and Juan Diego Catholic football. A study published in The BMJ in July found at least one in four former NFL players who died between 2016 and 2021 had chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE.

The study, reported by KUTV, examined 1,712 former NFL players who died between 2008 and 2021. Of the 338 who donated their brains, 315 had a CTE diagnosis. Researchers estimated CTE prevalence at death among players who died from 2016 to 2021 ranged between 24.5% and 97.7%.

The findings hit close to home for Scott Mitchell, a former University of Utah quarterback who played 12 NFL seasons. Mitchell told KUTV he believes he suffered multiple concussions that were never diagnosed.

"The next thing I remembered, I was lying in a hospital bed, and it was about seven hours later …" Mitchell said, describing a playoff collision with Tampa Bay Buccaneers linebacker Derrick Brooks. "I'm like, 'Oh, I'm hungry. How did I end up here?'"

Mitchell said NFL testing has since shown normal brain function. During his career, he said, players rarely discussed head injuries.

What UHSAA requires

The UHSAA's concussion management policy, adopted March 28, 2024, requires member schools to educate athletes about concussions, immediately remove any player suspected of having one and obtain medical clearance before the player returns. Utah state law has required removal and clearance since May 2011.

The Utah High School Activities Association's (UHSAA) graduated return-to-sport protocol has six steps, each requiring at least 24 hours. Average return time is about 20 days, according to the UHSAA clearance form.

What it doesn't require

Preseason baseline testing is optional. The UHSAA policy states baseline testing "may be a part of a school's concussion management program, but is not to be considered mandatory." The policy cites the 6th International Conference on Concussion in Sport, which did not formally recommend baseline testing because of "challenges in reliability and uniform feasibility."

Whether Corner Canyon or Juan Diego Catholic voluntarily conducts baseline testing beyond the UHSAA minimum could not be confirmed from available sources.

Benjamin Christiansen, a clinical neuropsychologist with the Sports Neuropsychology Society, told KUTV that baseline tests lose value when they are not updated as young brains develop. He described meeting athletes who were baselined once as children and never retested. The UHSAA policy itself suggests repeating baseline assessments every one to two years if a school chooses to use them.

Shifting attitudes

A Deseret News/Hinckley Institute of Politics poll of 744 registered Utah voters, conducted Sept. 10-15, found 52% were comfortable with a child in their family playing football. After respondents learned about the BMJ study, comfort dropped 12 points to 40% and discomfort surged 16 points to 54%. The margin of error was plus or minus 4 percentage points.

The shift was sharpest among women. After learning about the study, only about a quarter of Utah women surveyed said they were comfortable with kids playing football.

About 2 million American children ages 6 to 17 play organized tackle football, down 7% since 2019, according to the Sports & Fitness Industry Association.

Christopher Nowinski, co-founder of the Boston University CTE Center and a co-author of the BMJ study, told KUTV the research should push the conversation beyond the pros.

"The question is, the NFL is built upon children playing the game, and that is the place we need to have a real conversation," Nowinski said.

No scheduled date for the UHSAA to revisit its baseline-testing policy has been announced.