Emeka Megwa, a former University of Washington Huskies football player, is suing the university, seeking damages from them and nine current/former medical and coaching staff members, the Seattle Times is reporting.
Former Husky football player Emeka Megwa filed a civil suit against the University of Washington on Monday, seeking damages for alleged medical negligence. https://t.co/GYJB60AQU4
— Seattle Times Sports (@SeaTimesSports) February 29, 2024
The Seattle Times cites King County Superior Court records and mentions that Megwa, who played running back for the school from 2021-22, is seeking damages due to his ACL injury rehabilitation, which, he alleges, led to another ACL injury.
The current/former staff members he's seeking damages include the sports medicine staff, football coaching staff, athletics trainers, and physical therapists.
As the Seattle Times report mentions, civil suits in Washington don't disclose the monetary damages that are being sought. While they contacted the school for comment, they didn't respond.
In his complaint, Megwa alleges that he was pressured to practice, was criticized by the coaching staff for being physically unable to participate in workouts, and ultimately, was dismissed from the program after a second reconstructive knee surgery.
Also, the complaint mentioned that doctors and physicians weren't consulted about his injury even though he mentioned pain months before the second ACL tear.
"The main thing he wants is to prevent this from happening to other student athletes," Megwa's attorney Andrew Ackley said Tuesday. "When there's a major reconstructive surgery, the surgeons should be the ones saying what these athletes should be available to do, not trainers or coaches."
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Megwa, a former four-star Fort Worth, Texas recruit, is sadly no stranger to injury issues. In June 2021, he tore his left ACL while participating in "football activities."
Megwa reclassified his enrollment to head to the program early, foregoing his senior season. Former Huskies head coach Jimmy Lake said the school would manage his injury.
"(He's a) talented running back," Lake said in September 2021. "He's really big. He's physical. He sees where defenders are going to be before they show up. He breaks tackles and makes guys miss. Now we've just got to get him here and he's got to learn our techniques, our schemes.
"We've got to get him in shape, and we'll be very patient with him," Lake finished.
The suit also mentions De. Albert Gee. He oversaw the rehab at UW Medical Center, and he's also the UW Athletics team physician. Dr. Gee projected a nine-to-12-month recovery time, in line with the fall camp in 2022. During this time, Lake was fired after an incident involving a player and poor performance. Incumbent Alabama Crimson Tide head coach Kalen DeBoer was hired in his place. This led to the Megwa being restricted to side rehab and physical therapy activities. Megwa alleges that DeBoer's staff didn't communicate how the rehab would progress.
"I think it's fair to say he felt he was well taken care of and valued with the Jimmy Lake crew," Ackley said. "And there was a real change in attitude toward him with the new coaching staff. They didn't know him. They didn't recruit him. And they may not have known as well what his medical history was, but either way, it's inexcusable what they put him through."
Fast-forward to January 2022, and Megwa alleges that he was instructed to partake in running and lifting despite not being cleared by Dr. Gee or any other doctor.
That same month, on the 13th, Gee allegedly said that he was two to three months away from being cleared to play, writing a note stating: "I do not see a rush to get him back anytime soon, I think he will be ready for spring ball but even that I think we will just have to wait and see and I do not think there is a rush."
Then, on January 22, Megwa reported left shin pain. He claims he was provided with a new pair of shoes and not sent to a doctor.
On February 1, 2022, Megwa said he was performing a lateral shuffling drill and felt a "sharp pain" in his left knee, the Seattle Times mentions. An on-field evaluation determined everything, including the ACL, was stable.
However, as the lawsuit says, Megwa continued to mention knee pain and swelling but was prescribed painkillers. Additionally, Megwa alleges that he was "berated and ridiculed" in front of teammates.
In his lawsuit, Megwa says he was told to "drop your (expletive) nuts and get on the (expletive) line, that's some pussy ass shit."
Continuing the timeline, in late February 2022, Megwa said he felt pain in that knee but wasn't sent to a physician. Then, in March 2022, not only could he not run, but Dr. Gee revealed he tore his left ACL again.
"He's been set back multiple years in his recovery," Ackley said.
After this tear, Megwa had another surgery and was allegedly told to hit the transfer portal by an unnamed Huskies coach during spring exit meetings.
Ending up at Oklahoma, Megwa played in two games in 2023, totaling six rushing yards.
"He really wants to protect other students," Ackley said, "whether it's at UW or any other college, and have them get the same protections as any other worker who's going back to work after an injury. These athletes obviously put their bodies on the line, but this was not a risk-of-football injury. This was a totally preventable reinjury and UW messed up his recuperation."
The Seattle Times mentions that DeBoer did not "immediately respond" to a request for comment on Wednesday.
