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ORANGEBURG – A jury awarded $18 million in damages Oct. 23 to a couple who contend the NCAA was liable to Robert Geathers and his wife for not warning or taking safety precautions to protect college football players like him from possible brain injuries. Geathers played defensive end at South Carolina State University in the late 1970s and was drafted by the Buffalo Bills in 1981, although he didn’t get the chance to play professional football because of injury. Today he is permanently disabled and suffers substantial symptoms of neuro-cognitive injuries that he and his wife, with their legal team, believe were caused or magnified by repetitive concussive head impacts Geathers sustained while playing college football. The couple sued the NCAA in Circuit Court in April 2019, two years after Robert Geathers was diagnosed with brain damage by a medical professional who believe the damage was caused by head injuries. The NCAA, according to the lawsuit, failed to notify or educate Geathers and other players about the debilitating long-term dangers of concussions and failed to protect them. The NCAA knew or should have known by 1933 of medical evidence related to brain injuries and football, the lawsuit alleged. The Post and Courier left messages with attorneys for both the plaintiff and defendant Oct. 28 but did not hear back before publication. In defense of the NCAA, its legal team contended that the plaintiffs’ attorneys failed to prove any fraud or concealment, or that the NCAA was negligent in any legal relationship with Geathers. The defense also sought dismissal of the case based on its position that the plaintiffs’ attorneys presented no evidence the NCAA was willful, wanton or acted with reckless disregard. The NCAA is the governing body of collegiate athletics with a membership of 1,098 colleges and universities and 102 athletics conferences, according to information on its website.
