TAMPA, Fla. – Taj Taylor wants to go pro. But a concussion almost sidelined his dream.
"It was a really scary feeling, definitely very scary," Taj said.
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No ambulance was there.
"I was out for at least 10 minutes at the time," said Taj. "The 10 minutes I was out, the ambulance could have been there and taken me to the hospital."
An ambulance is at every game now and former NFL player and high school coach Marcus Paschal says that's not all.
"The state has mandated certain videos and everything that every player needs to watch so that they're more educated about the concussions," Pashcal said.
Some schools are trying to cut down on injuries by: teaching new tackling techniques, improving the way equipment fits and limiting contact in practice. But Taylor says, "Even when they teach you to tackle it's hard to bring that same concept into the game because the game is very different than practice. In the game, everything is going much faster."
Dr. Greg Savel, MD, Pediatrician at Happy Kids in Clearwater, Florida says the game shouldn't take all the blame.
"I had a child come in yesterday," Saval said. "He is a senior quarterback in a very prominent high school in this town. A lot of scouts are looking at him. He has a very good chance to get a scholarship to play in college and yet he injured himself with a closed head injury last weekend and I'm going to keep him out for two weeks. I have everything just short of death threats being given to me right now."
But Coach Pashcal says doctor's orders have to be final.
"Back when I was playing, once you feel good you can get back out," Pashcal said. "And now it's a certain protocol where it's day-to-day and then finally you have to see a physician to get completely cleared to get back on the field."
Taj is back going full force.
According to the CDC, once athletes suffer one concussion, they're more at risk of getting another one. And today, student athletes must have sports insurance policies. Taj says his only safety suggestion is to play hard but play smart.