I can’t tell you when I first touched a basketball. But I can tell you why I fell in love with it.

When we look back on the spring of 2018, we may remember this time for the recommendations of the Commission on College Basketball and the settlement of a significant concussion trial.

A proposal that would have altered the Division III football preseason to permanently implement important health and safety recommendations was defeated at the 2018 NCAA Convention, prompting the division’s members and governing bodies to explore the issue and emerge with a new proposal.

Each spring, my favorite March Madness memory replays in vivid detail as I watch the buzzer beaters punctuating the excitement of the Division I Men’s Basketball Championship.

No priority can be higher than the health and safety of our student-athletes, and making knowledgeable, informed decisions to promote their well-being requires accurate data.