The Maryland football program has placed two trainers and the team’s strength coach on administrative leave as it continues to investigate the death of offensive lineman Jordan McNair. McNair died over the summer after being hospitalized following a team workout.
The three men placed on leave were athletic trainer Wes Robinson, director of athletic training Steve Nordwall, and Rick Court, Maryland’s assistant athletics director for sports performance, according to an ESPN report.
McNair, a 6-foot-4, 325-pound offensive lineman, was hospitalized on May 29 following an organized team workout. McNair was airlifted to the local hospital after the session, though the university has remained quiet about the exact details that led to his hospitalization. While in the hospital, McNair received a liver transplant and was “fighting for his life.” He ultimately passed away in June from heatstroke at age 19.
The report indicates that the coaching staff was not attentive to obvious issues McNair was facing near the end of the workout.
But multiple sources present at the workout told ESPN that McNair experienced physical problems toward the end of the workout and needed two teammates to help him complete the 10th sprint. Sources said after the 10th sprint that Robinson yelled, “Drag his ass across the field!”
“There were multiple people that said, ‘Wow, Jordan looks f—ed up, he doesn’t look all right,'” one player present at the workout told ESPN. “We knew he was really exhausted, but we didn’t know he was in danger of his life. But that doesn’t mean that a medical professional shouldn’t know to put him in an ice tub.”
Maryland kicks off its 2018 campaign on Saturday, Sept. 1 against the Texas Longhorns. Kickoff at FedExField is set for 12:00 p.m. ET on FOX Sports 1.
