Former NFL running back Merril Hoge and longtime NFL neurosurgeon Dr. Joe Maroon have joined the inaugural advisory board at smart mouthguard company Prevent Biometrics. Others added to Prevent’s new advisory board include retired U.S. Army neurologist Dr. Sidney Hinds, Veritas Sports Injury Research Network CEO Dr. Peter Cummings, Scrum Ventures managing director Michael Proman, and former French rugby player Frédéric Michalak.
Prevent’s sensor-embedded mouthguards to track the severity of head impacts outfits youth and pro athletes across World Rugby and the 2021 women’s Rugby World Cup, the Rugby Football Union, Super League Europe, Rugby Football League, U.S. youth and college football programs, as well as soldiers in the U.S. Department of Defense. Dr. Hinds currently serves as the chief health equity officer and deputy medical director for the NFLPA and the medical director for the MLSPA. Prevent Biometrics released a 2.0 version of its mouthguard in November that’s intended to push the company’s presence beyond football and rugby into sports such as basketball and soccer.
Maroon has worked as the Pittsburgh Steelers’ team neurosurgeon since 1977 and also now serves as a senior advisor on the NFL’s Head, Neck and Spine Committee, and medical director for the WWE. Cummings is also a senior medical advisor to Tom Brady’s TB12 Sports. Hoge, a former ESPN analyst, was forced to retire early from the NFL in 1994 due to head injuries. He has since authored a book titled “Brainwashed: The Bad Science Behind CTE and the Plot to Destroy Football."
