High school football player killed during log exercise designed for U.S. Navy SEALs

A freak accident during a team-building activity during a high school football practice took a tragic turn on Thursday morning in New York, claiming the life of a high school junior. A log fell on the head of Joshua Mileto, 16, and he was pronounced dead at a nearby hospital after being rushed for treatment.

The log was being used as part of an exercise commonly used by U.S. Navy SEALs. The log was being carried by Mileto and a handful of teammates when at some point the log fell and struck the WR/CB in the head. No other injuries were reported.

Questions have already been raised about whether or not a high school football team should be performing drills designed for Navy SEALs. In recent years, however, the idea of going through a Navy SEALs workout with a football team has been advertised, and perhaps glorified, by a variety of college football programs. Of course, college football players collectively are in much better shape to handle those types of workouts than high schoolers. Representatives and coaches from Sachem East High School have not commented on the situation while an investigation is underway by local authorities.

The exact nature of the log exercise that led to the tragedy has not been described in great detail, but a quick search of Navy SEALs log exercises on YouTube quickly uncovered a pretty common drill.

This video gives an overview of the log physical training drill used by U.S. Navy SEALs. The exercise is designed to build endurance.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dugmYrCg_MI

And here is a video of a common team-building log drill in action…

The school’s football season is scheduled to kick off on Monday, August 14. As of now, there is no word on any changes to that schedule. Whenever the season does start, the Sachem East High School football team will certainly be playing with a heavy heart.

[ESPN/FOX 5 NY]