I see it more and more at the High School, College and Pro levels, mouth guards not being worn. Is this no longer enforced or did the rules change regarding wearing mouth guards? I don’t hear anyone talking about it but notice it without any enforcement.

I have wondered too HCP.  

This has filtered down from the NFL. Mainly with receivers and defensive backs. If you never put it in your mouth then don’t hang one from your face mask. Sets a bad example as I see JFL kids imitating the behavior. 

Between that and kids with no knee pads….. 

I personally haven't seen any kids not wearing mouth guards at practices or games.   I can also attest knee pads and covering the knees has been a point of emphasis each week.   Several kids are wearing the mouth guards that are not attached to their helmets.

I feel like there has been an overall lax in enforcement of safety rules in regard to mouth pieces and pads for a few years now. This falls on the coaches way more than anyone else, then the officials next. If they are not properly equipped the player is not supposed to be on the field until they are legally equipped. Where are the ADs in all of this, they are the ones ordering the pants that players wear that are to small to cover the players knees even if they wanted to wear knee pads. To me it seems like the officials got tired of sending players off for "small" infractions becuase they didn't want to listen to the coaches complain, and have the mind set of "IF you want to risk your players getting hurt, that is on you". That's how I see it.

I think mouth pieces are important. Knee pads shouldn't matter. That small piece of foam isn't doing anything to protect a kids knee. The second I see refs sending people out for knee pads I know it's about to be a long night. 

1 hour ago, SC Fball HC said:

I personally haven't seen any kids not wearing mouth guards at practices or games.   I can also attest knee pads and covering the knees has been a point of emphasis each week.   Several kids are wearing the mouth guards that are not attached to their helmets.

Many kids wear mouth guards not attached to helmets. That's fine. Same thing all the way up through the NFL. My issue, as I stated earlier is the traditional mouth guard hanging from the helmet. If it's attached it should be in your mouth, not dangling like you see on almost every snap in the NFL, especially at the receiver positions?? At least in the JFL kids are told to put it back in, as they always have been for decades, by coaches, refs, etc.  The difference is today some kids are doing it, not out of forgetfulness, but imitation, and they begrudge being corrected because they are trying to copy the look of their NFL heroes.

Heck, I was a little chubby white kid but I still wore my orange Wilt Chamberlain headband because I wanted to be like Wilt every time I played ball or looked in the mirror. That's harmless and funny. But the mouthpiece is a huge safety factor and should be modeled correctly by the professionals, on every snap.  

17 minutes ago, wingt51 said:

That's definitely me, I was doing that at the beach a few weeks ago. I got frustrated and went to the local JFL game to count mouthpieces dangling from helmets. ?

True story-- it's a cool look that the NFL/NCAA allows, but High School does not. So some kids attach a mouthpiece to hang, but also wear a mouthpiece that's not attached. Seen it more than once.

 

People go to far too great of lengths to look cool. It seems laborious to me.

Given concussions are such an issue, I am surprised the old rule isn't strictly enforced. Not wearing a mouth guard is pretty dumb.  In addition to protecting teeth, research shows they also help prevent concussions. Risking an injury and missing 3 weeks in a concussion protocol to look cool is pretty dumb. 

 

https://www.ucalgary.ca/news/mouthguards-do-more-just-protecting-teeth-youth-ice-hockey#:~:text=Two styles of mouthguards tested&text=Both protected against concussion%2C reporting,and not the custom dental.

6 minutes ago, Pi said:

True story-- it's a cool look that the NFL/NCAA allows, but High School does not. So some kids attach a mouthpiece to hang, but also wear a mouthpiece that's not attached. Seen it more than once.

 

People go to far too great of lengths to look cool. It seems laborious to me.

It's all about the "drip".

Between the no knee pads and the pacifier mouth pieces. Sheesh where is this game headed??

Back in the day when some one had “Drip” they had to go to the Health Department….or so I had heard.