Report: Jordan McNair showed signs of heatstroke before death
Jordan McNair displayed several indicators associated with heatstroke before he collapsed during a Maryland football workout and died, sources told Heather Dinich of ESPN.
An official cause has yet to be announced. McNair, who was 19 years old, collapsed during the outdoor workout May 29 and was declared dead June 13.
An offensive lineman, McNair reportedly struggled to stand upright while running 110-yard sprints, exhibited signs of extreme exhaustion, and possessed a body temperature of 106 degrees when he arrived at a hospital.
The McNair family's attorney said the sophomore also suffered a seizure around 5 p.m., roughly 45 minutes into the workout and after one of the sprints.
"Our preliminary investigation reveals there is an unexplained one-hour time period when nothing significant was done to avoid the complications of heatstroke," the lawyer, Bill Murphy, said. "Although there is some evidence they allegedly tried to cool him down, he should have been iced immediately. He presented at the hospital with a temperature of 106, which means he was not cooled down.
"We're very concerned about the unexplained one hour between the time of the seizure and hyperventilating that was observed by a coach, and what happened in that remaining hour before the EMT people were actually called. This points to an utter disregard of the health of this player, and we are extraordinarily concerned that the coaches did not react appropriately to his injury."
Murphy noted the family is "likely" to file a lawsuit over the way McNair was handled during the workout, which was led by Maryland's strength and conditioning staff.
Maryland has been investigating the incident itself, and its findings are expected to be issued Sept. 15.
The Terrapins have placed unidentified members of its athletic training staff on administrative leave Friday in relation to the McNair fallout, a university spokesperson told Don Markus of the Baltimore Sun.
Program officials denied interview requests to ESPN but told the network in a statement that no player, trainer, or coach reported a seizure that happened at 5 p.m.
An unnamed player interviewed for the ESPN story said it was clear McNair was in extreme distress, and a medical professional should have been able to recognize his severe condition.
Another unnamed player said, "Jordan was obviously not in control of his body."
"He was flopping all around," the second player added. "There were two trainers on either side of him bearing a lot of weight. They interlocked their legs with his in order to keep him standing."