TULANE UNIVERSITY FOOTBALL player Devon Walker broke his spine in a helmet-to-helmet clash with a teammate in a game against Tulsa on Saturday, the team doctor said.
Walker was injured while making a tackle in the first half of the 45-10 defeat when his head struck that of a teammate.
In a post-game press conference, physician Buddy Savoie said that Walker, a senior-year safety, was in traction in hospital and had been diagnosed with a cervical spine fracture.
He was receiving treatment for swelling and was expected to have surgery “in the next day or two,” Savoie said.
A posting on the team’s Twitter account said the player was in stable condition.
“Mood in the locker room was somber,” Tulane head coach Curtis Johnson said on the school’s Twitter feed. “Definitely one of the most difficult times.”
(c) AFP, 2012