Inside Football’s Campaign to Save the Game

For The New York Times; November 2019

With a population of under 3,500, Maiden, North Carolina calls their city “the biggest little football town in the world.” Football is still the most popular boys high school sport in the United States, but participation has dropped considerably in the last ten years, including the varsity team at Maiden High. I spent couple days with the team in preparation for their biggest game of the season–the last home game against their division rivals, Newton-Conover. Maiden won in double overtime with a last second two-point conversion.

This story was part bigger story about the state of American football as the sport wrestles with its impact of CTE and traumatic brain injury.

Photographed for The New York Times