Lane Kiffin Disagrees with Larry Fedora's Comments on Player Health, CFB Changes

Lane Kiffin took issue with controversial comments made by North Carolina head coach Larry Fedora about changes being bad for the sport of football. 

Per ESPN.com's Jake Trotter, the Florida Atlantic head coach said he was "definitely" in support of changes designed to make the game safer for the players. 

"What's the most important thing," Kiffin asked. "Long-term health, or how the game looks?"

Fedora told reporters during the ACC Media Days on Wednesday that the sport of football is "under attack" and he doesn't see any definitive proof the game causes CTE. 

"I don't think it's been proven that the game of football causes CTE. We don't really know that," he said. "Are there chances for concussions? Of course. There are collisions. But the game is safer than it's ever been."

Kiffin agreed with Fedora that football was changing, but he was adamant that this was a positive thing for the sport. 

"I think the changes in the game that will continue to come are going to help people's concerns," he said.

Fedora went on to say a decline in football "would be the decline of our country, yes."

Medical journal JAMA published a study in July 2017 that found CTE in 99 percent of 202 deceased former NFL players' brains that were donated to be examined. 

College football has made rule changes in recent years specifically designed to reduce the risk of collisions and head injuries. One new rule approved for 2018 says fair catches caught inside the 25-yard line on kickoffs will be placed on the 25-yard line. 

In 2013, the NCAA adopted a targeting rule in which players who hit a defenseless opponent above the shoulders receive a 15-yard penalty and are subject to ejection.