Michigan quarterback Shane Morris has been diagnosed with a concussion, which should not surprise anyone after seeing the hit he took against Minnesota on Saturday and his body language after the play. Michigan athletic director Dave Brandon released a statement early Tuesday morning announcing that Morris has a “probable, mild concussion” and admitting that he should not have gone back into the game.
While he acknowledged that Michigan’s medical staff and coaches need to do a better job of communicating going forward, Brandon said Morris went back into the game because the athletic training staff never saw the shot he took to the chin. Trainers supposedly thought Morris was stumbling because of an ankle injury he suffered earlier in the game.
“In the fourth quarter, Shane took a significant hit and stumbled after getting up,” Brandon wrote. “From the field level and without the benefit of replays, medical and coaching staffs did not see the hit. Because they did not see the hit, the athletic training staff believed Shane stumbled because of his ankle injury. The team neurologist, watching from further down the field, also did not see the hit.
“However, the neurologist, with expertise in detecting signs of concussion, saw Shane stumble and determined he needed to head down the sideline to evaluate Shane. Shane came off the field after the following play and was reassessed by the head athletic trainer for the ankle injury. Since the athletic trainer had not seen the hit to the chin and was not aware that a neurological evaluation was necessary, he cleared Shane for one additional play.”
Going forward, Brandon says Michigan has decided have a doctor or athletic trainer in the press box so that they can see everything on the field.
What Brandon conveniently failed to address was Brady Hoke’s role in all of this. Hoke saw the hit. He’s not a team doctor, but you don’t need to have medical training to know there was a serious possibility of Morris having suffered a concussion. Everyone is responsible for looking out for the health of the players, not just the trainers.
