Former LSU football player Greg Brooks Jr. is publicly speaking out in the media after filing a lawsuit last year against the football program.
The former LSU safety is filing a lawsuit against his former college football program because of what he believes was mistreatment that led to his permanent physical limitations.
“Now, people cannot understand me,” Brooks Jr. told “Good Morning America” with a stuttered and slurred speech Monday.
In August 2023, Brooks Jr. claimed he started to feel dizzy, had a headache and was nauseous. He also alleged he passed out before vomiting in front of his coaches and athletic trainers.
Brooks claimed the athletic trainer told him he had vertigo, and he was cleared to return to practice. He reported the symptoms on a daily basis, but it wasn’t until 39 days after the symptoms started that the team made an appointment with a neurologist who discovered his brain tumor.
“The one call I received was, ‘I need you to get here,’ ” his father, Greg Brooks Sr., told “Good Morning America.” ” ‘Your son is having emergency surgery tomorrow morning.’
“He’s at LSU, one of the best colleges in the USA. I would have never thought his best interest wouldn’t have been at heart.”
The Brooks family believed the surgery was the only option at the time, and according to the lawsuit, they claim the surgeon wasn’t qualified to do the procedure. The brain surgery resulted in Brooks Jr. suffering multiple strokes and suffering severe and permanent injuries, according to the lawsuit.
“Honestly, I thought it was fake,” Brooks Jr. said. “Like, I was in disbelief. Like, a nightmare that I couldn’t wake up from.”
Brooks Jr., 23, is now cancer-free, but he’s had to relearn how to eat, write and speak.
“I just want young athletes in the same spot I was [to know that] if something is hurting, tell them,” Brooks Jr. said.
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