For many people, the beginning of the NFL season feels like a ceremonial end to the summer. Maybe it’s because the first games begin right around Labor Day. Or it could be that football seems like a cold-weather, fall sport to many people (particularly those fans who have to start thinking about scarves and gloves in November – or earlier). Regardless, these first few games are ripe with optimism; we’re still experiencing summer-like weather and no one’s favorite team is too terrible or out of the running (yet).
But playing such a physically demanding sport in this warm end-of-summer weather can also create some potentially dangerous playing conditions for the athletes. Did you know that Atlas Copco plays a role in helping players keep their cool (off the pitch and on the sideline that is)?
Bill Bates was an undrafted free agent out of the University of Tennessee when he earned a roster spot with the Dallas Cowboys. He spent his entire 15-year professional playing career as a safety with the Cowboys, a career that included two Super Bowl championships, a Pro Bowl selection and being named an All Pro.
Atlas Copco teamed up with Bates and Temperature Management Systems on a product that helps combat fatigue and improves player comfort, performance and safety. Developed by researchers at the University of Florida, players are fitted with a bladder system that fits between shoulder pads and the players’ skin and is then connected by hoses to an Atlas Copco air compressor that pushes cool, dry air underneath the shoulder pads and across the body core, refreshing players as they rest on the sidelines between plays.
Read the whole story here, and pass the chips and dip, please.
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