The start of the Willie Taggart era at Oregon has brought about some worrisome news. Per The Oregonian, at least three Ducks football players were hospitalized following strenuous offseason workouts conducted late last week.
Tight end Cam McCormick and offensive linemen Doug Brenner and Sam Poutasi are said to be in fair condition. Players have been participating in workouts since returning from the holiday break.
Per The Oregonian, the workouts that hospitalized the players could be described as rigorous, to say the least ...
Players this week were required to finish the same workouts, which were described by multiple sources as akin to military basic training, with one said to include up to an hour of continuous push-ups and up-downs. The sources said that some players "passed out" and others later complained of discolored urine, which is a common symptom of rhabdomyolysis. After testing, others were found to have highly elevated levels of creatine kinase, an indicator of the syndrome.
One player, Poutasi, has officially been diagnosed with rhabdomyolysis, a rare syndrome in which muscle tissue is broken down and leaks into the bloodstream. This can be triggered by extremely intense workouts.
Taggart, who changed strength & conditioning coaches after being hired late last month, reportedly visited some of the players in the hospital. Irele Oderinde, who joined Taggart from South Florida, is now leading the strength program.
Though rhabdomyolsis is considered rare, this is not the first time it has afflicted a football program during workouts. In 2011, 13 players at Iowa were hospitalized due to the disease.
