Student-Athlete Dies from Extreme Exhaustion

Jordan McNair, a 19-year-old freshman offensive lineman at the University of Maryland, collapsed during outdoor spring practice. Testimony from witnesses at the practice revealed that McNair exhibited signs of extreme exhaustion (Dinich, 2018). Additionally, witnesses indicated that he showed difficulty standing in an upright position while running 110-yard sprints under the supervision of the University of Maryland football strength and conditioning coach, Rick Court (Perez, 2018). Eventually, McNair was transported to a local hospital, where it was determined that he had a body temperature of 106 degrees. He died two weeks later due to heatstroke (Dinich, 2018). Shortly after his death, McNair's parents filed an intent to sue the state of Maryland for more than $30 million in damages (Ermann, 2018). Notably named in the lawsuit were DJ Durkin, head Maryland football coach; Wes Robinson, head athletic trainer for the Maryland football team; and Rick Court, head strength and conditioning coach (Ermann, 2018). Ordinary negligence is an unintentional tort comprised of four elements: duty, breach of that duty, proximate cause, and damage. All four elements must exist for negligence to be present. However, it is essential to note that the McNair family went as far as to claim gross negligence (Perez, 2018). This claim was supported by the findings of an investigation into McNair's death led by Dr. Rod Walters, a well-known expert on athletic training (Maese, 2018). Walters' report placed significant blame on Maryland trainers and medical staff (Maese, 2018). Specifically, Walters asserted that the staff, including Durkin, Court, and Robinson, were grossly negligent about Jordan McNair's well-being when he obviously needed urgent medical attention (Maese, 2018). While the McNair family was hoping to use the legal system to hold the university and coaches involved fully accountable, this case eventually was settled out of court. In the view of the Walters' report, heat-related deaths such as McNair and others are catastrophic situations that can be avoided. Paradoxically, the unnecessary aspect of heat-related deaths among intercollegiate football players offers organizations the chance to manage the risks of such occurrences and decrease their frequency.