UMD Football Coach Fired Following Death of Player

In May 2018, a football player on the University of Maryland (UMD) team collapsed while doing a workout routine that was designed by the university’s coaches and trainers. 19-year old Jordan McNair died of a heat stroke, after showing signs of acute exhaustion throughout the workout.

Following this incident, UMD placed various members within the coaching staff on administrative leave. The incident was further investigated for multiple months, and ultimately resulted in coach DJ Durkin being reinstated in early November.

However, two days after Durkin’s reinstatement, UMD’s president, Wallace Loh, decided to terminate Durkin’s career with the Maryland football team. While it was an extremely difficult decision for the university, Loh believed it to be in the best interests of team safety.

This conclusion brought immense relief to a variety of students within the community. When Durkin was initially reinstated, there was a lot of  backlash against this decision. Many of the students openly expressed their outrage towards the initial reinstatement of Durkin.

“Every Saturday my teammates and I have to kneel before the memorial of our fallen teammate,” UMD football player Ellis Mckennie tweeted. “Yet a group of people do not have the courage to hold anyone accountable for his death. If only they could have the courage that Jordan had. It’s never the wrong time to do what’s right.” He emphasized the team’s pain and sadness as a result of McNair’s death. He also expressed his discontent over the inability of the university to hold anyone accountable for McNair’s inconsolable death.

Governor Larry Hogan stated how he was shocked and outraged over the University’s Board of Regents’ decision to reinstate Durkin. When Hogan called on UMD officials to possibly reconsider the decision they made, a couple hours later, Durkin was fired from the university’s athletic department.

In the future, the university and its students hope to place a stronger emphasis on the student’s wellbeing.

Article by MoCo Student staff writer Skye Levy of Walter Johnson High School