Cal admits negligence in death of Ted Agu

The University of California at Berkeley has admitted negligence in the death of former walk-on Ted Agu, according to The San Francisco Chronicle.

Agu, a defensive lineman from Bakersfield, passed away on Feb. 7, 2014 during a workout and had sickle cell trait, though the university first said that he passed away from a heart condition and insisted on completing the hard training himself.

However, the newspaper reported otherwise.

“Daniel Lasco, a running back and team captain at the time, was on the rope with Agu during the drill. He said he assigned Agu to lead their group up the hill, which required him at times to pull the other players behind him,” the reaport read.

“Former offensive lineman Matt Cochran, who was injured and observed from the drill route’s periphery, described Agu falling multiple times and showing signs of fatigue beginning about midway through the workout. About halfway up the hill on their last lap, Agu finally stopped, bent over, fell to his knees, then curled into a fetal position. A few players said they helped him up and walked a few steps with him before he fell down again.”

As a result of this tragedy, Agu’s parents are suing the school for wrongful death over how the situation was handled, especially since, according to the team doctor, that the staff was aware of his condition and was told to have him cease workouts whenever symptoms became visible. Sickle cell trait is a blood disease that, especially in athletes, causes major fatigue during strenuous workouts and can cause death if not handled properly.

Considering how a report surfaced yesterday that concussions in the NFL rose by 32 percent this season, the last thing that the college football world needs on top of worries over concussions is any bad publicity about players dying from inherited diseases that were basically tossed to the side by team medical staffs.

The good news is that Cal has admitted liability so that it may settle with Agu’s family rather than go to trial in April, so here’s hoping that this story is over once and for all.

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*Featured Photo (above) credit to Cal Golden Bears

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