Alabama A&M says player remains in stable condition, hours after announcing his death

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (AP) — Alabama A&M linebacker Medrick Burnett Jr. remains hospitalized with a head injury suffered in an October game, the school said hours after announcing that he had died.

The athletic department sent out a retraction Wednesday on the status of Burnett, who was injured in a game against Alabama State on Oct. 26. The second statement said that the initial news of Burnett’s death came “from an immediate family member on Tuesday evening."

“Our staff acted accordingly to the wishes of the family member to inform the A&M community and beyond of this unfortunate occurrence,” Wednesday evening’s statement said. “Upon hearing from a representative from UAB Hospital this afternoon, we learned that he remains alive.

“We express our immediate regret for disseminating false information. However, we hold complete joy in knowing that Medrick remains in stable condition.”

A statement on the gofundme.com page for Burnett said Wednesday: “Please pray he is having a tough time but we are holding on til the very end. God give us strength so we can keep the faith.”

The redshirt freshman from Lakewood, California, joined Alabama A&M’s team over the summer after starting his college career at Grambling State.

Burnett played in seven games and made five tackles, including three against Austin Peay.

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