Jordan McNair
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Jordan Martin McNair (March 3, 1999 – June 13, 2018) was an
American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...
player from
Randallstown, Maryland Randallstown is an unincorporated community and census-designated place in Baltimore County, Maryland, United States. It is named after Christopher and Thomas Randall, two 18th-century tavern-keepers. At that time, Randallstown was a tollgate cro ...
, who played on the
offensive line In gridiron football, a lineman is a player who specializes in play at the line of scrimmage. The linemen of the team currently in possession of the ball are the offensive line, while linemen on the opposing team are the defensive line. A numbe ...
. In May 2018, following an offseason workout with the
Maryland Terrapins football The Maryland Terrapins football team represents the University of Maryland, College Park in the sport of American football. The Terrapins compete in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) and the Big Ten Conference. The Terrapins jo ...
team, McNair was hospitalized with heat stroke; despite an emergency liver transplant, McNair died fifteen days later on June 13, 2018. Following the ensuing investigation of the culture of the
University of Maryland The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland. Founded in 1856, UMD is the flagship institution of the University System of M ...
football program, head coach
D. J. Durkin Daniel John Durkin (born January 15, 1978) is an American football coach, who is currently the defensive coordinator at Texas A&M. He is the former co-defensive coordinator and linebackers coach at the University of Mississippi ( Ole Miss) and he ...
was fired on October 31.


Early life and playing career

McNair was the son of Marty McNair and Tonya Wilson. He was touted as a four-star recruit, ranked in the top 25 nationally for offensive linemen, according to ESPN and Scout. During his high school career, when he played
offensive tackle Offensive may refer to: * Offensive, the former name of the Dutch political party Socialist Alternative * Offensive (military), an attack * Offensive language ** Fighting words or insulting language, words that by their very utterance inflict inj ...
for
McDonogh School McDonogh School is a private, coeducational, PK-12, college-preparatory school founded in Owings Mills, Maryland, United States in 1873. The school is named after John McDonogh, whose estate originally funded the school. The school now enrolls ...
in
Owings Mills Owings Mills is an unincorporated community and census-designated place in Baltimore County, Maryland, United States. It is a suburb of Baltimore. Per the 2020 census, the population was 35,674. Owings Mills is home to the northern terminus of ...
, McNair was named to the American Family Insurance All-USA Maryland Football Team (2016) and the ''Baltimore Sun'' All-Metro first team (2015, 2016). McNair was also considering attending
Ohio State The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best public ...
,
Penn State #Redirect Pennsylvania State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with campu ...
, or
Rutgers Rutgers University (; RU), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a public land-grant research university consisting of four campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's College, and was a ...
, and had been extended offers from
Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama (state song), Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville, Alabama, Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County, Al ...
,
Auburn Auburn may refer to: Places Australia * Auburn, New South Wales * City of Auburn, the local government area *Electoral district of Auburn *Auburn, Queensland, a locality in the Western Downs Region *Auburn, South Australia *Auburn, Tasmania *Aub ...
,
Boston College Boston College (BC) is a private Jesuit research university in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. Founded in 1863, the university has more than 9,300 full-time undergraduates and nearly 5,000 graduate students. Although Boston College is classifie ...
, and
Duke Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ran ...
, but chose to attend the University of Maryland.


Death

On May 29, 2018, McNair collapsed during a strenuous afternoon practice. He was hospitalized that evening after visibly showing signs of extreme exhaustion with a body temperature of recorded upon arrival. He was airlifted later that night to the
R Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center R Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center (also referred to simply as Shock Trauma) is a free-standing Physical trauma, trauma hospital in Baltimore, Maryland and is part of the University of Maryland Medical Center. It was the first facility in the worl ...
to receive an emergency
liver transplant Liver transplantation or hepatic transplantation is the replacement of a Liver disease, diseased liver with the healthy liver from another person (allograft). Liver transplantation is a treatment option for Cirrhosis, end-stage liver disease and ...
, where he died on June 13. Though no cause of death was initially listed for McNair, on July 16 his parents stated that he died from
heat stroke Heat stroke or heatstroke, also known as sun stroke, is a severe heat illness that results in a body temperature greater than , along with red skin, headache, dizziness, and confusion. Sweating is generally present in exertional heatstroke, ...
. This was corroborated by a report published by
ESPN ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...
in August, with teammates and medical staff noticing that McNair suffered an apparent
seizure An epileptic seizure, informally known as a seizure, is a period of symptoms due to abnormally excessive or synchronous neuronal activity in the brain. Outward effects vary from uncontrolled shaking movements involving much of the body with los ...
at approximately 5 PM, one hour before a 911 call was placed. University officials dispute the time of the seizure. An investigation started immediately after his death showed that McNair first complained of cramps, an early sign of heat illness, at 4:59 PM but did not arrive at the hospital for treatment until 6:36 PM and that trainers failed to recognize the signs of heat illness, nor did they take aggressive measures to cool him. A second investigation, this one covering the culture of the Maryland football program, was started after ESPN published an investigative article on August 10, 2018. Initially, one coach and two trainers were suspended after the ESPN article, including Rick Court, the strength and conditioning coach named as the primary source of abuse. Court resigned almost immediately after being suspended. Head coach D.J. Durkin was suspended one day later; after the second investigation concluded that Maryland football did not have, by definition, a toxic culture, Durkin was reinstated on October 30, only to be fired the next day by University President Wallace Loh.


Walters Report

An independent report was commissioned from Walters Inc., a South Carolina-based sports medicine consulting firm, in June 2018 following the death of McNair, and the report was released on September 21. During the investigation, the Board of Regents of the
University System of Maryland The University System of Maryland (USM) is a public higher education system in the United States, U.S. state of Maryland. The system is composed of the eleven campuses at College Park, Maryland, College Park, Baltimore County, Maryland, Baltimor ...
assumed control from the campus. The Walters report found that trainers failed to identify the symptoms of exertional
heat illness Heat illness is a spectrum of disorders due to increased body temperature. It can be caused by either environmental conditions or by exertion. It includes minor conditions such as heat cramps, heat syncope, and heat exhaustion as well as the mo ...
, did not take sufficiently aggressive measures to treat McNair's elevated
core temperature Normal human body-temperature (normothermia, euthermia) is the typical temperature range found in humans. The normal human body temperature range is typically stated as . Human body temperature varies. It depends on sex, age, time of day, exert ...
, and the University's catastrophic incident guideline was not followed. When questioned for the development of the Walters report, the head trainer stated he was afraid McNair could have drowned if they had attempted immersing him in cold water to lower his body temperature.  Starting at 4:41 PM, McNair ran the first of ten timed runs; athletes in his group were allotted nineteen seconds to complete each run, and McNair successfully completed seven repetitions. By the eighth repetition, McNair was visibly laboring to complete the training and by 4:59 PM, trainers began to assist McNair, who had described symptoms of cramping. A witness recalled a coach forcing McNair to finish the sequence of sprints despite struggling mightily, telling his teammates to "drag his ass across the field".  McNair was taken from the field at 5:22 PM for further treatment, including cooling with cold towels, until he exhibited a mental status change at 5:50 PM. Trainers then called the team physician at 5:52 PM, and, at the physician's direction, followed up with an emergency call to
9-1-1 , usually written 911, is an emergency telephone number for the United States, Canada, Mexico, Panama, Palau, Argentina, Philippines, Jordan, as well as the North American Numbering Plan (NANP), one of eight N11 codes. Like other emergency nu ...
at 5:55 PM. At approximately the same time, McNair experienced a seizure. 9-1-1 records indicate the first call was recorded at approximately 5:57 PM and the caller only stated that McNair was " hyperventilating" and "unable to control his breathing" without mentioning a seizure. At 6:02 PM, the head trainer called campus security to report respiratory distress experienced during the seizure, to ensure that paramedics would be available. The first ambulance arrived at 6:03 PM. No one had been sent to meet the first ambulance and direct it to the Gossett Football Team House, where McNair was being treated.  In addition, in
Prince George's County ) , demonym = Prince Georgian , ZIP codes = 20607–20774 , area codes = 240, 301 , founded date = April 23 , founded year = 1696 , named for = Prince George of Denmark , leader_title = Executive , leader_name = Angela D. Alsobrook ...
, first responder ambulances do not carry
paramedic A paramedic is a registered healthcare professional who works autonomously across a range of health and care settings and may specialise in clinical practice, as well as in education, leadership, and research. Not all ambulance personnel are p ...
s, so a second ambulance was dispatched with paramedics at approximately 6:07 PM. The second ambulance arrived at 6:11 PM and after an
intravenous line Intravenous therapy (abbreviated as IV therapy) is a medical technique that administers fluids, medications and nutrients directly into a person's vein. The intravenous route of administration is commonly used for rehydration or to provide nutrie ...
was secured, departed at 6:27 PM; McNair was transported to
Washington Adventist Hospital Adventist HealthCare White Oak Medical Center is a hospital with 180 private patient rooms and serves patients in Montgomery, Prince George's, and surrounding counties. Adventist HealthCare White Oak Medical Center operates as part of Adventist ...
, arriving at 6:36 PM. At the hospital, McNair's body temperature cooled to after twelve minutes of immersion in ice and water, but medical experts commenting after his death believed that cooling occurred too late. Doctors at Washington Adventist noted "patient improving" by 8:32 PM before he was airlifted to R Adams Cowley.


Resulting investigation of Maryland football program


Toxic culture reported

After McNair's death, ESPN questioned current and former players for Maryland football as well as people close to the program, going on to publish an investigative report on August 10, 2018. In the report, ESPN found evidence of a toxic culture instilled by the coaching staff led by head coach D.J. Durkin and strength and conditioning coach Rick Court, who Durkin had once called his "most important hire" in an interview shortly after accepting the position of head coach in December 2015. Players interviewed in August 2016 after the first full offseason with Court agreed, and a comparison of Terrapin player weights between the Spring 2016 and Fall 2016 media guides showed notable differences. Players reported the intensity of voluntary workouts in June and July 2018 decreased after McNair's death was announced, but resumed normal intensity in August. In general, the strength and conditioning coach has been named "perhaps the most important person on a school's coaching roster besides the head coach" because of NCAA rules that prohibit head and position coaches from holding offseason practices, but permit up to eight hours of strength and conditioning activities per week during those times. This in turn means the strength and conditioning coach essentially is responsible for the team during the offseason. Michael Baumann, a sportswriter for ''The Ringer'', characterized Court's behavior as "bullying" and pointed out there are no protections afforded to college football players who were at the mercy of their coaches' authority: " llege football coaches are afforded broad power over their players. They frequently determine the class schedule and course of study for the players in their charge. They control how much an individual student-athlete plays, and under what circumstances. Those decisions could have million-dollar consequences on a player’s NFL career." Many of the individuals interviewed described the coaches carrying out questionable behaviors such as: *Belittling and humiliating certain players, including forcing an overweight player to eat candy bars while watching his teammates work out *Fear and intimidation tactics such as excessive verbal abuse for players who fail to complete workouts, including one who passed out *Extreme punishments such as forcing an injured lineman to compete in a
tug of war Tug of war (also known as tug o' war, tug war, rope war, rope pulling, or tugging war) is a sport that pits two teams against each other in a test of strength: teams pull on opposite ends of a rope, with the goal being to bring the rope a certa ...
competition by himself with one hand against all the defensive backs *Endorsing unhealthy eating habits such as forcing underweight players to binge eat to gain weight In the wake of these allegations, the University accepted responsibility for McNair's death and placed several athletic staffers, including Court, on administrative leave. President Loh and Director of Athletics Damon Evans met privately with McNair's parents in the morning of August 14 to apologize personally before making a public admission of responsibility and follow-up actions later that afternoon.


Culture investigation

The University also commissioned an independent panel to investigate the toxic culture allegations; the panel initially was made up of four members appointed by Loh: two retired judges, a former federal prosecutor, and an unfilled position for a former football coach and athletic administrator. After the Board of Regents took over responsibility for both investigations on August 17, it was modified to eight members: five were appointed by the Board of Regents, and the remaining three had been originally appointed to the four-member panel by Loh (Legg, Scheeler, and Williams). The panel consisted of: * Frederick M. Azar, M.D. * Bonnie Lynn Bernstein * Robert L. Ehrlich, Jr. * Hon. Benson Everett Legg * Hon. C. Thomas McMillen * Charles P. Scheeler * Hon.
Alexander Williams Jr. Alexander Williams Jr. (born May 8, 1948) is a former United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Maryland. Education and career Born in Washington, D.C., Williams received a Bachelor of Arts degree fro ...
* Douglas Lee Williams In a letter sent to parents of Maryland players before the ESPN report's publication, Durkin stated that he was aware of the investigation and that he is fully cooperating with it. Court resigned from his position on August 13, 2018, shortly after being suspended. On August 11, 2018, Durkin was also placed on administrative leave and
Matt Canada Matt Canada (born January 19, 1972) is an American football coach who is the offensive coordinator for the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League (NFL). He previously served as the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach for ...
was named interim head coach until the culture investigation was completed. Punishments would be determined upon the investigation's conclusion. Members of the Champions Club, an athletic booster organization at Maryland, expressed their support for Durkin in a letter sent to the Board of Regents later in August. Members of the Champions Club stated there was no evidence of a toxic culture and that Durkin could be "welcomed back by the fans, by the players, by the donors with open arms." Champions Club member Rick Jacklitsch faulted McNair for improper hydration: "As much as we hate to say this, Jordan didn't do what Jordan was supposed to do. A trainer like Wes Robinson thinks a kid's properly hydrated and runs a drill set up for kids that are properly hydrated, and when the kid didn't drink the gallon
f water F, or f, is the sixth letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''ef'' (pronounced ), and the plural is ''efs''. Hist ...
he knew he had to drink, that's going to send the wrong signal to the person running the drill." When the football team traveled to play
Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...
, Jacklitsch was removed from the team's flight after his remarks were made public. The report leaked ahead of its public release; according to a copy obtained by the Associated Press in late October, it faulted the Athletics Department for not adequately supporting Durkin, blamed Court for unacceptably abusive behavior, and concluded that "Maryland's football culture was not toxic" by definition. Despite a claimed
open door policy The Open Door Policy () is the United States diplomatic policy established in the late 19th and early 20th century that called for a system of equal trade and investment and to guarantee the territorial integrity of Qing China. The policy wa ...
, players and assistants "feared retribution and dismissal of their concerns because of the closeness of Mr. Durkin and Mr. Court", and "players rarely felt comfortable sharing concerns with urkin. The conclusion that the culture was "not toxic" was ridiculed by sports writers Claire McNear (for ''The Ringer''), Tom Ley (for ''
Deadspin ''Deadspin'' is a sports blog founded by Will Leitch in 2005 and based in Chicago. Previously owned by Gawker Media and Univision Communications, it is currently owned by G/O Media. ''Deadspin'' posted daily previews, recaps, and commentaries of ...
''), Richard Johnson (for ''
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''), and Jeff Seidel (for ''
Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also re ...
'').


Consequences

The Board of Regents of the
University System of Maryland The University System of Maryland (USM) is a public higher education system in the United States, U.S. state of Maryland. The system is composed of the eleven campuses at College Park, Maryland, College Park, Baltimore County, Maryland, Baltimor ...
, acting on the conclusions of the independent culture investigation, recommended the reinstatement of Coach Durkin on October 30, 2018 over the objections of University President
Wallace Loh Wallace Dao-kui Loh ( zh, c=陸道逵, p=Lù Dàokuí; born 1946) was the president of the University of Maryland, College Park, a position assumed November 1, 2010. He retired from the presidency on June 30, 2020 and was succeeded by Darryl ...
. Although Loh had recommended Durkin to be dismissed, the Board urged Loh to retain Durkin and Evans. Loh fired Durkin one day later, on October 31. The Board also recommended reinstating the two trainers who had been suspended in August. However, after Durkin's firing, those two trainers, Wes Robinson and Steve Nordwall, also were subsequently terminated on November 6. President Loh announced his resignation, effective June 2019, on October 30, the same day he accepted the recommendations of the Board. The chair of the Board of Regents, James T. Brady, announced his immediate resignation on November 1, following the outcry that ensued after Durkin was reinstated. In a statement released on November 7, the new chair of the Board, Linda R. Gooden, apologized "to the McNair family, the University of Maryland, College Park community, and to the citizens of our state" because the Board had "lost sight of its responsibility to the university system" and that "everyone on the board now understands that the board's personnel recommendations were wrong." In January 2021, University of Maryland has agreed on a $3.5 million
settlement Settlement may refer to: *Human settlement, a community where people live *Settlement (structural), the distortion or disruption of parts of a building *Closing (real estate), the final step in executing a real estate transaction *Settlement (fina ...
with his parents, Marty McNair and Tonya Wilson.


Legacy

McNair's family started the Jordan McNair Foundation in July 2018. On May 31, 2019, the Jordan McNair Foundation held the first annual Jordan McNair Golf Classic tournament at Turf Valley Resort in
Howard County, Maryland Howard County is located in the U.S. state of Maryland. As of the 2010 census, the population was 287,085. As of the 2020 census its population rose to 328,200. Its county seat is Ellicott City. Howard County is included in the Baltimore-Colu ...
. Events included an auction to raise funds for the Foundation, whose mission is to raise awareness of heat-related illnesses. In August 2018, before the start of the 2018 season, the University of Maryland football team announced they have temporarily retired McNair's jersey number 79 until 2020. In addition, the Terrapins will wear No. 79 as a helmet patch, and will seal McNair's locker with glass through 2020. McDonogh School retired McNair's jersey number 70 in September. On June 13, 2019, the one-year anniversary of McNair's death, the National Center for Children and Families arranged Jordan McNair Field Day at J.C. Nalle Elementary School in Washington, D.C. Dozens of Maryland football players attended the athletic event while wearing white t-shirts bearing McNair's jersey number 79. Later that day, the remainder of the team joined the Jordan McNair Foundation at a health and wellness clinic at McDonogh School.


See also

*
Korey Stringer Korey Damont Stringer (May 8, 1974 – August 1, 2001) was an American professional football player who was an offensive tackle in the National Football League (NFL) for six seasons. He played college football at the Ohio State University and wa ...
* List of American football players who died during their careers


References


External links

* * *


Investigative reports into McNair's death

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:McNair, Jordan 1999 births 2018 deaths Players of American football from Baltimore American football offensive linemen Maryland Terrapins football players College football controversies Deaths from hyperthermia Sports deaths in Maryland