A man who was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease is suing the NCAA, alleging that his days playing football more than 30 years ago contributed to his illness.
According to Trib Live, Joel Jarosz was an offensive lineman for Slippery Rock University from 1976-78. The lawsuit Jarosz filed claims he received repeated blows to the head during practices and games.
“The NCAA failed to educate Mr. Jarosz about the long-term, life-altering risks and consequences of head injuries that can result from participation in the game of football, despite its knowledge of those risks,” stated the lawsuit.
Jarosz has hired attorney Jason Luckasevic, who was part of a number of other similar lawsuits, including one filed by the widow of a man who played linebacker for the University of Texas. That case ended in a settlement. “We’re not looking to get a sell-out settlement like was created in the NFL cases. We’re looking for justice against the NCAA,” Luckasevic said Monday.
Luckasevic represents about 500 former players who have recently settled concussion-related lawsuits with the NFL.
Jarosz’s lawsuit claims that the NCAA has known about the dangers of football and brain injuries since the 1930s.
“Years later, in 2010, the NCAA adopted a concussion management policy that delegated the concussion program to its member schools. This public relations maneuver, in the (face) of decades of knowledge coupled with inaction, was too little, too late for plaintiff,” according to the lawsuit.
