Another reason all-star football games should be banned

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Here we go again. Another kid survives a four-month football season without serious injury, only to get taken out in a meaningless all-star game.

This time it’s Matt Scott, the quarterback at Corona Centennial, who went down on the second play of the game Saturday in the Southern California Bowl at Cal State Fullerton. The word from Centennial school officials is Scott has a broken ankle.

I wonder what the Arizona coaches think about that right now? I imagine Coach Mike Stoops has that look on his face, like he wants to rip somebody’s head off. I wonder if Michigan is quietly pulling its offer off the table?

But what I really wonder is, WHY WAS SCOTT EVEN PLAYING IN THIS GAME!?!

What was the advantage? You played a 15-game season, you had your college plans locked up and still had other teams begging for your signature.

That’s why there’s no such thing as year-round club football teams, it’s too brutal of a sport, your body needs time off and when you do play, you better be in the best shape possible.

Tony Gonzalez is probably the most well-known athlete from around here to get injured in an all-star game, blowing out his knee shortly after graduating from Huntington Beach High, but before he left to play football and basketball at California.

Brian Shrock got bounced around pretty good as an undersized, scrambling quarterback at Edison a couple years ago, but wasn’t laid out like he was in the Shrine Game in June 2006, dislocating his shoulder early in the game, an injury that cost him a chance to battle for the starting quarterback job at Saddleback College that fall.

I could probably find a half dozen more examples if I dug long enough, but I think you get the picture. The risk/reward of all-star games is not worth it.

-- Dan Arritt

-- Image by Glenn Koenig/Los Angeles Times