PISCATAWAY -- According to its website, the Guardian Cap is defined as a soft-shell helmet cover designed to reduce impact of head-to-head collisions by up to 33 percent.
It's a fancy way of saying the extra layer of protection can cut down on the risk of concussions when helmets inevitably collide in a typical football practice.
In its study of football injuries, the NCAA reported concussions make up 7.4 percent of all college-football injuries and the preseason has the highest injury rate compared with in-season and post-season practices.
A.J. Blazek, however, doesn't need any NCAA data to tell him his Rutgers offensive linemen are prone to head injuries any time they line across a fellow 300-pound linemen.