‘A huge difference’: Suburban football teams like what they see from padded helmets

Are Guardian Caps the key to changing the narrative behind head injuries in football? In a game that has seen high rates of concussions, what real change can these caps make?

“Right away I realized that head injuries just weren’t a thing anymore, just the point of contact does not have any head injuries at all,” said Zach Samaan, a senior linebacker and running back at Burlington Central. “The difference is actually crazy.”

“I think football, quite frankly, has a bad rap of injuries, and I think we have a great opportunity to stop or cut the numbers in half,” said Lake Zurich senior right tackle and team captain Max Maj.

“I think (use of the caps) would help parents to see the sport as a safer option,” he added.

The Guardian Cap is a soft-shelled outer covering for a football, lacrosse or hockey helmet, focused on reducing the impact of blows to the head.

The cap, which according to Maj “quite literally feels like a sponge,” reduces head impact up to 33%, fits all helmets, diminishes wear and tear, and dampens sound, according to Guardian’s website.

“It’s a huge difference in the way that I see it on the O-line,” Maj said. “Because, whether it’s intentional or not intentional head contact, there’s a difference, and I love the way that Guardian Caps kind of absorb it.”

“Especially in the trenches,” he added. “It’s repeated, repeated, repeated contact, 60 plays a game, I don’t even know how many during practice, because there’s always contact in the trenches.”

“As a player that plays in the box every single play, there is a huge difference with the Guardian Caps,” Samaan said.

The IHSA permits the use of the padded helmets in practice. However, they are not mandatory and not worn in games.

Each cap costs $69.99.

“We felt like it was a minute cost for the level of safety that could be provided for our players,” said Burlington Central coach Brian Iossi on investing in a cap for each player in the program.

Both Iossi and Lake Zurich coach Ron Planz have seen success with Guardian Caps. Burlington Central has not had a player suffer a concussion since the Rockets adopted the caps, including games.

Planz noted less than 10 concussions in his program since Lake Zurich started using the caps in 2019.

The NFL will allow players to wear Guardian Caps during regular-season games for the first time in 2024. In 2022 the league mandated the use of caps in practice for offensive and defensive linemen, linebackers and tight ends. This off-season, running backs, fullbacks, wide receivers and tight ends were added to that list.

The NFL reported a 52% decrease in concussions suffered by players wearing Guardian Caps since the mandate was implemented in 2022, according to Guardian’s website.

Indianapolis Colts running back Jonathan Taylor became one of the league’s first stars to wear a Guardian Cap during the team’s opening game of the 2024 preseason.

“When you see the guys that you grew up watching, and that you’re looking up to wearing it, it makes you want to wear it even more,” Samaan said. “You see that it’s OK to wear these Guardian Caps and that change is OK, especially when it’s for the better of the game.”

Guardian introduced the caps in 2010 to address a “clear need” to advance the standard helmet, according to the company’s website.

Lake Zurich started wearing the Guardian Caps after Planz arrived in 2019. Planz coached at Elmhurst University from 2014-2019. His first team with Elmhurst became the first to fully outfit the caps, according to Guardian.

“Studies started to show that it was the continuous, minor, little hits that accumulated over time, as opposed to some of the really big, one-time hits that kind of contribute to some of those things,” Planz said. “(Introducing the Caps) was going to make that better, so I went all in.”

Initially, players resisted the caps. Iossi and Planz noted early concerns with appearance.

“That shouldn’t be the first priority,” Maj said. “It should be, all right, am I going to be able to get up and do the same play again? Or am I going to get carted off the field because I did something wrong, and I could have prevented it?”

“I think it impacts it positively because, you know, without the Guardian Cap, you might be a little scared to go in there, and that’s honestly how you’re going to get hurt, once you’re scared,” Samaan said. “So, (with) the Guardian Cap, you’re not scared and you’re just going to go in and do your job.”

Youth football participation has seen a decline in recent years amid safety concerns.

“My parents didn’t let me play football until freshman year of high school,” Maj said. “I begged them, ever since I was a little kid to play, and they finally gave in. But I think it would have been a lot simpler if Guardian Caps were introduced earlier on.”

Iossi, who coaches wrestling at Burlington Central in addition to football, noted a similar increase in participation to when the wrestling uniform changed from a singlet to a two-piece, a decision focused on safety for athletes.

“(The caps are) something that I make a point to talk about at all parent meetings,” Iossi said. “I don’t know if it has any direct correlation to it, but our numbers have gone from 104 kids two years ago to 126 kids.”

“I think it should be required for kids in their youth camps and their youth seasons,” Maj said when asked about the future of Guardian Caps in football, “because not only would it protect them like it does in high school, college and the pros, I think that it would allow more kids to play the sport.”

“We do this for a reason, it’s there for a reason,” Maj said. “So just trust the process and wear it.”