ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — A former University of Central Florida wide receiver says teammate Ereck Plancher gasped for breath, fell to his knees as his eyes rolled back into his head and struggled before collapsing and dying during his final workout.
Anthony Davis said Monday that UCF coach George O’Leary ordered all water and trainers out of the indoor fieldhouse.
He also testified that the coach was yelling obscenities at Plancher as he told him to get up after falling during an obstacle course drill.
Plancher’s parents have filed a wrongful death suit saying the UCF Athletics Association is responsible for their son’s death on March 18, 2008. They are trying to prove that coaches pushed him excessively despite knowing he had sickle cell trait.
Attorneys for the athletic association say Plancher died from an undetected congenital heart defect.
