Tennessee Volunteers

Tennessee OL McBride giving up football for health reasons

Published Jun. 12, 2019 3:58 p.m. ET

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KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Tennessee freshman offensive lineman Melvin McBride is giving up football for medical reasons.

Volunteers coach Jeremy Pruitt said Wednesday that a "personal medical condition" was discovered during McBride's physical after the offensive lineman arrived on campus. Pruitt didn't specify the nature of McBride's health issue.

"Melvin is a great young man, and my heart breaks for him and his family," Pruitt said in a statement.

Pruitt said McBride will remain on scholarship.

McBride tweeted earlier Wednesday that "health problems" were causing him to stop playing. McBride said football had changed his life and blessed him "in ways I could never imagine."

McBride added that "now God has a new journey for me."

He was regarded as a consensus three-star recruit when he signed with Tennessee in December out of Whitehaven High School in Memphis, Tennessee

McBride becomes the latest in a series of Tennessee offensive linemen to say they're leaving the team for medical reasons since the end of last season. The others are Tanner Antonutti, Devante Brooks, Eric Crosby and Chance Hall.

Hall was the only lineman in that group who played at all for Tennessee last season.

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