Maryland announced Tuesday that DJ Durkin has been reinstated as Maryland's coach following a lengthy investigation into the culture of the program that included mistreatment of players. That investigation started after offensive lineman Jordan McNair collapsed at practice on May 29, and eventually died on July 13 due to heatstroke.
McNair's father, Marty McNair, spoke out after the university held a press conference announcing the decision of the Board of Regents.
"I feel like I've been punched in the stomach, and somebody spit in my face," Marty McNair, the father of the late Jordan McNair, says in response to the decision to reinstate Maryland football coach DJ Durkin. https://t.co/a44zF2ooBQ pic.twitter.com/OHVuAdN2ru
— Adam Rittenberg (@ESPNRittenberg) October 30, 2018
The investigation into the program concluded that the training staff didn't notice signs of heatstroke prior to McNair collapsing at practice on May 29, and that more than an hour elapsed between the time he collapsed and the time a 911 call was placed. During that time, McNair reportedly suffered from seizures.
"We have learned that Jordan did not receive appropriate medical care and mistakes were made by some of our athletic training personnel. ... The emergency response plan was not appropriately followed," athletic director Damon Evans said on Aug. 14. "Second, the care we provided was not consistent with best practices. And third, heat illness was not properly identified or treated. Our athletic training staff did not take Jordan's temperature and did not apply a cold-water immersion treatment."
The investigation also stated that Durkin didn't properly monitor the strength and conditioning program under former coach Rick Court. Court was dismissed from his position on Aug. 14.
"Mr. Court would attempt to humiliate players in front of their teammates by throwing food, weights, and on one occasion a trash can full of vomit, all behavior unacceptable by any reasonable standard. These actions failed the student-athletes he claimed to serve," the investigation concluded.
Durkin and Evans will return to their roles this week.
