A Florida high school football player is recovering after suffering a severe brain injury during a game on Friday, Aug. 23.
Nathan Dowie, starting quarterback at Hilliard High School, had just scored a touch a touchdown when his head “went into he ground” and he fell over.
The teenager’s father, Sean Dowie, told WSOC-TV that fall is what he thinks caused his son’s brain to bleed.
“His head went into the ground, and he sort of flipped over. We’re sort of suspecting that may have been the time where it happened,” Dowie said.
Florida high school quarterback suffers brain bleeding after touchdownhttps://t.co/YrXpf7seyQ
— @HerbertReed on Parler (@Herbert_L_Reed) August 25, 2019
Nathan Dowie seemed fine after the game, until he got into the locker room.
“He started feeling really sick, and at that time the trainer knew we needed to call 911, get him to the hospital,” Byron Crews, one of the team’s coaches, recalled to the news outlet.
Nathan was rushed to the University of Florida Health in Jacksonville where doctors discovered his brain was bleeding and had to operate on the teen overnight.
Meanwhile, Hilliard High School’s football Facebook asked friends and loved ones for support.
“Last night, one of our players, Nathan Dowie, suffered a serious injury. He is currently hospitalized. Please keep Nate and his family in your thoughts and prayers,” Hilliard Flashes Football wrote in an Aug. 24 Facebook post. “Most of you reading this know or have met Nate. He is an amazing, strong young man. We are all blessed to have him touch our lives. He & his family need their Hilliard family, friends and neighbors’ support and prayers.”
The page added that proceeds from the Aug. 23 50/50 drawing will be donated to Dowie’s family.
“Instead of a 1-man sled purchase, all proceeds from the current TNT drawing will be donated to the Dowie family. Please share on all social networks so we can get this message out to everyone.”
Anyone who wishes to donate, purchase a ticket, or help the Dowie family is asked to contact Hilliard Football Club President Billy Moore at (904) 228-3904.
Doctors at UF Health have evacuated the bleed in his brain and stopped the bleeding, Sean Dowie told WSOC-TV, adding that that’s all the information he has.
“It’s hard, but we’re all hanging in there,” the Nassau County dad said.
A GoFundMe initiative has been started to help the family cover medical expenses.
“Nathan will be in the hospital for a while,” according to the fundraising description. “And we would like to help with the expenses,” it adds.
So far, $3,800 of its $5,000 goal has been raised.
Football Injuries
There are about 1.2 million football-related injuries per year, according to the National Library of Medicine (NCBI). Of those, 51 percent were sustained during training.
Overall, lower extremity injuries accounted for 50 percent of all injuries (with knee injuries accounting for up to 36 percent). Upper extremity injuries accounted for 30 percent. In general, sprains and strains account for 40 percent of injuries, contusions at 25 percent, fractures at 10 percent, concussions at 10 percent, and dislocations 15 percent.