NASHVILLE, Tenn. —The Tennessee Titans recently partnered in conjunction with USA Football to host the sixth-annual Tennessee Youth Football Forum.
Mike Cuzzone, the USA Football Great Lakes Regional Manager who represents Tennessee, conducted and moderated a forum that provided valuable information to the Tennessee youth league commissioners.
The event covered a number of topics including health and safety initiatives, the overall state of the game at the youth level, and the Heads Up Football membership program. Additionally, there was an open forum discussion between commissioners on the best practices for conducting fundraisers, marketing, and increasing volunteer involvement.
"The involvement of the administrators made it a great forum, " Cuzzone said. "There were great topics discussed that have not been mentioned in my previous forums this year."
Concussion awareness was the most anticipated topic. The NFL and USA Football are partners in the Heads Up Football initiative, a program that is designed to educate proper tackling techniques and teach parents and coaches the signs of a concussed athlete. The youth league commissioners received a step-by-step instructional process to the membership program and learned about the benefits and all the educational resources available.
Titans general manager Ruston Webster and coach Mike Munchak welcomed the administrators and thanked the league commissioners for their efforts in the community and stressed how important their leadership is toward the future of the NFL.
"I appreciate their (the youth football commissioners) time and efforts of attending the event to talk about youth football," Webster said. "It means a lot to (the Titans), the league, and to football in general, and if we want our game moving forward we need events like this."
About USA Football
USA Football, the sport's national governing body in the United States, hosts dozens of football training events annually offering education for coaches, skill development for players and resources for youth football league commissioners. The independent nonprofit is the official youth football development partner of the NFL, its 32 teams and the NFL Players Association. USA Football manages U.S. national teams within the sport for international competitions and provides more than $1 million annually in equipment grants and youth league volunteer background check subsidies. Endowed by the NFL and NFLPA in 2002 through the NFL Youth Football Fund, USA Football (www.usafootball.com) is chaired by former NFL team executive Carl Peterson.
