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http://www.columbiatribune.com/spor...cle_a38b2813-663c-5ed8-b05b-5f449a2d3f69.html
By DAVID MORRISON
Friday, June 5, 2015 at 2:00 pm
The St. Louis Rams released former Missouri wideout Bud Sasser on Thursday after he could not get physically cleared to play because of a pre-existing heart condition.
The team waived him with a nonfootball illness designation after he was diagnosed with a genetic condition that causes the thickening of the heart muscle that could impede blood flow.
“It sucks. I would like to get out there and play. There’s nothing like sitting back and watching — I’ll tell you that much,” Sasser told the Tribune by phone Thursday morning. “If the opportunity comes up, I’ll happily take it. As of right now, I don’t really have an idea where to go from here.”
Sasser was not invited to participate in February’s NFL combine — where prospects undergo rigorous health testing — but took physicals during rookie orientation last month and was not cleared to participate.
Coach Jeff Fisher, who spoke with the media after the Rams’ organized team activities Thursday, said the team’s medical staff and outside physicians recommended Sasser not play.
“We did some extensive studies after the draft — very extensive, as you can imagine — and it was determined and concluded by numerous physicians that he had a pre-existing condition that we don’t feel will allow him to play,” Fisher said.
In a text, Sasser’s agent, Scott Thiel, said the receiver got a second opinion from doctors at the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota, who told Sasser that while he does have a “low-risk” case of this diagnosis, his heart is “fine to play football.”
“He has a very small case of the diagnosis given in St. Louis, he is at little to no risk, he should be able to play,” Thiel wrote. “The doctor told Bud he in fact knows there are others in the league playing with this same issue.”
The Rams chose the 6-foot-3, 219-pound Sasser with the 201st overall pick in the sixth round of May’s NFL draft. Sasser caught 77 passes for 1,003 yards and 12 touchdowns as a senior for the Tigers last fall.
Fisher told reporters that the Rams consulted with Missouri about Sasser’s issue and that it “kind of slipped through the cracks.”
In an email, Missouri team spokesman Chad Moller said federal privacy laws prohibit the university from discussing specific medical records about one of its students, but “nobody is allowed on the field if our medical team isn’t comfortable with their health situation.”
The Rams signed Sasser to his rookie contract Tuesday, a four-year deal worth $2.39 million according to Spotrac.com. The only guaranteed portion of the contract is the $113,737 signing bonus.
Thiel said the decision over whether Sasser can play is ultimately up to a team’s doctors and “hopefully another team will see things our way.”
By DAVID MORRISON
Friday, June 5, 2015 at 2:00 pm
The St. Louis Rams released former Missouri wideout Bud Sasser on Thursday after he could not get physically cleared to play because of a pre-existing heart condition.
The team waived him with a nonfootball illness designation after he was diagnosed with a genetic condition that causes the thickening of the heart muscle that could impede blood flow.
“It sucks. I would like to get out there and play. There’s nothing like sitting back and watching — I’ll tell you that much,” Sasser told the Tribune by phone Thursday morning. “If the opportunity comes up, I’ll happily take it. As of right now, I don’t really have an idea where to go from here.”
Sasser was not invited to participate in February’s NFL combine — where prospects undergo rigorous health testing — but took physicals during rookie orientation last month and was not cleared to participate.
Coach Jeff Fisher, who spoke with the media after the Rams’ organized team activities Thursday, said the team’s medical staff and outside physicians recommended Sasser not play.
“We did some extensive studies after the draft — very extensive, as you can imagine — and it was determined and concluded by numerous physicians that he had a pre-existing condition that we don’t feel will allow him to play,” Fisher said.
In a text, Sasser’s agent, Scott Thiel, said the receiver got a second opinion from doctors at the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota, who told Sasser that while he does have a “low-risk” case of this diagnosis, his heart is “fine to play football.”
“He has a very small case of the diagnosis given in St. Louis, he is at little to no risk, he should be able to play,” Thiel wrote. “The doctor told Bud he in fact knows there are others in the league playing with this same issue.”
The Rams chose the 6-foot-3, 219-pound Sasser with the 201st overall pick in the sixth round of May’s NFL draft. Sasser caught 77 passes for 1,003 yards and 12 touchdowns as a senior for the Tigers last fall.
Fisher told reporters that the Rams consulted with Missouri about Sasser’s issue and that it “kind of slipped through the cracks.”
In an email, Missouri team spokesman Chad Moller said federal privacy laws prohibit the university from discussing specific medical records about one of its students, but “nobody is allowed on the field if our medical team isn’t comfortable with their health situation.”
The Rams signed Sasser to his rookie contract Tuesday, a four-year deal worth $2.39 million according to Spotrac.com. The only guaranteed portion of the contract is the $113,737 signing bonus.
Thiel said the decision over whether Sasser can play is ultimately up to a team’s doctors and “hopefully another team will see things our way.”
