" … Boxing accounts for nearly one out of every five concussions at West Point, and one out of four at the Air Force Academy. So far this school year, boxing has caused a quarter of all concussions at the Naval Academy — more than twice as many as football." …
This may not get a lot of traction here as the serviceacademyforums.com board is where most of this conversation is occurring.
Consider the source.
This article answers some of the nonsense in the NYTs piece. I think it’s an excellent piece.
Some 35 years ago I took Plebe Boxing as part of the required physical education courses. I failed to pick an intramural sport quickly enough and ended up taking part in intramural boxing as well. It was my misfortune to fight the Brigade Champion who jabbed me three times for every punch I could throw. But I lasted 3 rounds before a technical knockout and from that point forward in the eyes of the upperclass (who had thought I was a spazz up to that point) I had shown courage in the face of adversity and was viewed differently. The mission of the military academy is to produce Army Officers who could very likely end up in close-quarters combat. The public might like to think that combat is now reduced to drone strikes or cruise missiles but the harsh reality is very different.