Two Nebraska football players were hospitalized after a workout last week.
Wide receiver Tyjon Lindsey and defensive lineman Dylan Owen were both sent to the hospital where they were diagnosed with rhabdomyolysis. Lindsey spent three days in the hospital, while Owen spent two.
Cornhuskers head coach Scott Frost took full responsibility for the incident. "Our strength coach and training room were coordinating to do absolutely the best they could to make sure the transition went smooth, but two kids that exerted themselves too far and had (rhabdomyolysis),” Frost told the Lincoln Journal Star.
From AB: Rhabdomyolysis More Common as Workouts Intensify
Rhabdomyolysis is a condition that involves the breakdown of muscle tissue which is then released into the bloodstream. The condition usually happens after high-intensity workouts and can result in kidney failure.
Frost said the hospital stays for both Lindsey and Owen were primarily precautionary. "I didn't know much about (rhabdomyolysis) until recently, when I saw it happen at other places and I figured that would never happen to us, as careful as we are, but unfortunately it did and we take it very seriously," Frost said.
From AB: Overly Aggressive Workouts Put Athletes at Risk of Rhabdomyolysis
Frost said the workout that Lindsey and Owen were doing was supposed to be 40 minutes but was cut to 32 minutes of weights. He called the workout “fairly intense” but said that his team at University of Central Florida, where he was previously the head coach, had been doing it for two years. “I'm not trying to make an excuse, but I'm always going to be transparent. We had trainers in the weight room during the workout to pull guys out of the workout if they saw any problems.”
The Journal Star reports that while not common, rhabdomyolysis has been seen in college players in recent years, including three cases at Oregon last winter, and 13 at Iowa in 2011.
