Wednesday's health and safety news from the world of sports:
- Penn State football coach Bill O'Brien has instituted "thud" tackling, where no player goes to the ground during practices, according to the Allentown Morning Call.
- The University of New Haven men's soccer team will be testing Triax Technologies' new Smart Impact Monitor, according to the Middletown Press. UNH will be the first college in the nation to use these high tech devices to monitor head trauma to its student athletes.
- WUSA-TV in Washington, D.C., showed how the Heads Up Football program is being taught in Fairfax County, Va.
- The Maryland Gazette reported that the baseline testing for possible concussions has begun across the state.
- The Enquirer-Herald in York, S.C., looked at how the Heads Up Football program is being demonstrated in its community.
- WCTV-TV showed how the new Georgia concussion laws are being implemented in Valdosta.
- NBC Bay Area showed how the newly opened UC San Francisco concussion clinic is helping Bay Area athletes.
- KCTV-TV in Kansas City reported on the use of Guardian Caps by high school football teams in the area.
- The Montreal Alouettes confirmed that quarterback Anthony Convillo is sidelined with a concussion, CBC reported.
- Agence France-Press reported on the furor over New Zealand suspending top cricket player Jesse Ryder for six months for testing positive for banned substances.
-- Bill Bradley, contributing editor