Concussion lawsuit against NCAA could be first to reach jury

(KYMA, KECY/ AP News) - A lawsuit alleging the NCAA failed to protect a former University of Southern California football player from repetitive head trauma is nearing trial in in what could become a landmark case.

The wrongful death suit filed by Matthew Gee’s widow says the former USC linebacker died in 2018 from permanent brain damage caused by countless blows to the head he took while playing for the 1990 Rose Bowl winning team.

Of the hundreds of wrongful death and personal injury lawsuits brought by college football players against the NCAA in the past decade, Gee’s is only the second to go trial alleging that hits to the head led to chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) and could be the first to reach a jury.

Gee was one of five linebackers on the 1989 Trojans squad who died before turning 50. Most notably, including NFL star Junior Seau, who suffered from CTE and killed himself in 2012.

The NCAA has countered saying it wasn’t responsible for Gee’s tragic death, blaming it on heavy drinking, drugs and other health problems.

This comes as the issue of concussions in sports, and football in particular, has been front and center in recent years as research has discovered more about long-term effects of repeated head trauma.