Alabama A&M’s Medrick Burnett Jr. died at age 20 on Wednesday night time after struggling a head damage in a soccer recreation in October, Jefferson County deputy coroner AJ Clifton confirmed with The Athletic on Friday.
The redshirt freshman linebacker suffered a head damage in the course of the Bulldogs’ 27-19 loss to Alabama State, their in-state rival, on Oct. 26 in the course of the Magic Metropolis Basic.
Clifton declined to present any additional data to the outlet; nevertheless, a information launch is anticipated to be given on Saturday.
On Wednesday, the college did verify the dying of its pupil; nevertheless, it withdrew the assertion simply hours later after listening to from UAB Hospital that he remained alive.
Alabama A&M mentioned it was “originally advised by an immediate family member on Tuesday evening” in regards to the 6-foot-2, 225-pound freshman.
“We retract the news of the passing of Medrick Burnette Jr, that was originally advised by an immediate family member on Tuesday evening,” the college’s athletic division posted on X. “Our staff acted accordingly to the wishes of the family member to inform the A&M community and beyond of this unfortunate occurrence. Upon hearing from a representative from UAB hospital this afternoon, we learned that he remains alive. We express our immediate regret for disseminating false information however, we hold complete joy in knowing that Medrick remains in stable condition.”
A GoFundMe began by Burnett’s household says the linebacker was “severely injured after a head-on-head collision” in October, which fell only a day earlier than his twentieth birthday.
“He had several brain bleeds and swelling of the brain,” the household additionally wrote. “He had to have a tube to drain to relieve the pressure, and after 2 days of severe pressure, we had to opt for a craniotomy, which was the last resort to help try to save his life.”
As of Friday night time, the household had raised over $51,000 of a $100,000 objective.
On Wednesday, the GoFundMe organizer and Burnett’s oldest sister, Dominece James, posted the newest replace on the web page, saying “Please pray he is having a tough time but we are holding on til the very end. God give us strength so we can keep the faith.”
Burnett initially performed for Grambling State in Louisiana earlier than transferring to Alabama A&M.
The Lakewood, California native had 5 tackles throughout seven video games of the Bulldogs’ 6-6 season.
