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High school football in America is deadly serious.

Recently, a couple of players at a Texas school needed medical attention after a gruelling team workout (not pictured above).

The parents, as you can imagine, are horrified by the treatment of their children at Rockwall-Heath High School in Heath, Texas.

Dr Osehotue Okojie is the parent of one student who had to go to the hospital after being forced to do nearly 400 push-ups without a water break, per BBC.

I can barely do five, so I cannot even imagine the pain these kids must have been put through.

“It’s been a nightmare of a week,” Dr Okojie said, confirming that more than a dozen players had to go to the hospital after the drill.

Two weeks ago, her son had come home from an off-season practice in pain and unable to lift his arms:

He was diagnosed with rhabdomyolysis, a medical condition that involves the breakdown of muscle tissue that causes the release of a damaging protein into the blood, she said. He spent a week in the hospital before coming home.

“Rhabdomyolysis doesn’t just fall from the sky. It’s usually from overuse, and it’s not common,” she said.

Another parent, Maria Avila, said her son was “very stiff” and “could not move his arms” after the practice:

“For me it’s a nightmare – so frustrating,” she said. “It worries me because it affects my son’s mental health.”

The school’s head football coach, John Harrell, has been placed on administrative leave and the school is conducting their own investigation into the matter:

JUST IN: Rockwall-Heath’s varsity football coach, John Harrell, is now on administrative leave pending a third-party investigation after several students needed medical attention/hospitalization after an offseason workout last Friday.

This letter 👇🏻 was sent to parents today. pic.twitter.com/nL28qdGOZn

— Matt Howerton (@HowertonNews) January 10, 2023

Dr Okojie is keen to hold those responsible accountable, saying that “we need to stress health versus just solely focusing on winning.”

At what cost is winning worth it, she laments.

[source:bbc]