We Need You in the Locker Room: A Neurologist's Journey Behind the Scenes of Major College Football - By David Kaufman, DO

October 2025 | Vol. 69, No. 3
Written by Samuel Garloff, DO

Serendipity is seldom given the credit it is due. It is the proximate cause that led me to read this book. By a random act, I learned of the “One Team, One Health” initiative at Michigan State University, a proposal to combine the College of Osteopathic Medicine (DO) and the College of Human Medicine (MD) into the College of Medicine, granting both degrees. I contacted Dr. Kaufman, founding chair of the Department of Neurology and Ophthalmology at MSU, to seek more information. We emailed back and forth, eventually reminiscing about our families and experiences. Doing this, I learned of his book.

If you are a football fan at any level of the sport, this book is for you. If you have no interest in the sport but treat, diagnose, or want to learn more about TBI: Concussions, Second Impact Syndrome (SIS), and Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE), this book is for you. It’s not simply a sports book, it’s not a medical text, it’s a mixture of both, including compelling character development and sometimes humorous, sometimes deeply personal experiences as the author shares his development from a newbie sports neurologist to become the consummate sports neurologist at MSU. 

This book highlights teamwork not only on the field but in the locker room involving physicians, trainers, coaches, and managers. You will experience the joys and traumas the author lived and witnessed as the book unfolds.

Dr. Kaufman shares his wisdom along with deeply emotional experiences, making this book a compelling read. Near the end of the book, the words of a former player, successfully treated for his fractured neck, perfectly and precisely summarize the impact of Dave’s work. “My daughters and I are so thankful you were on the sideline that day.” This is a must-read.  Proceeds of the book are donated to MSU charities.

Published by The Sager Group LLC, TheSagerGroup.net.

Available at davidikaufman.com and Amazon.