OSU linebacker Tyler Moeller’s injury was due to a suckerpunch given to him by a Florida man, Rivals Radio reported this morning.
Details are still being revealed, but according to the report, Moeller was on vacation with his parents in Florida when another man overheard the linebacker identify himself as an Ohio State football player. The man allegedly approached Moeller and struck him in the head without warning.
Moeller apparently shook off the effects and resumed his vacation, but over the ensuing days became increasingly ill. According to Rivals Radio, upon returning to Columbus he began having seizures and was admitted to OSU Medical Center, where he underwent surgery to relieve brain swelling.
More details (and, hopefully, clarifications) to follow…
Yeesh, if all of that is true, that is sickening.
The guy who hit him didn’t happen to be named Kimbo, did he? Because you’d either have to be stupid or have beer muscles to hit a linebacker from any college program. Not smart.
I’m sure this kid has taken a TON of blows to the head, why would this bother him? Can we verify if this is true?
If the above it true, you can bet the guy who punched him has already bragged about it, and will be caught. Florida law enforcement will no doubt take this seriously, as it reflects poorly on the entire state, and does nothing to help tourism.
The rumor in the articles I’ve been reading is that after the suckerpunch he hit his head on the concrete ground/floor… which is probably what caused the injury, not the actual punch.
Of course, everything online is still just rumor, no telling what actually happened yet
@jay – He may take a lot of blows to the head, but that’s with a highly protective helmet on. It’s a little different than hitting his head unprotected. As Don mentioned, it was hitting the ground that did the damage.
@Bobo Buckeye – let’s hope so.
Don – >>…floor caused the injury, not the actual punch.<< If the punch made him hit the floor, then the punch caused the injury. Same as if a person shot someone else, you wouldn't say "it was the bullet that actually caused the injury, not the man who shot it."
sportsmonkey, the difference is that jay is assuming a glass jaw caused the issues. Obviously that’s not the case. Also any guy can be taken out if the punch lands in the right area espescially if the guy isn’t expecting it.
What is really important is this person totally recovers from his injuries. Football is insignificant.
I agree that it is important that he recovers and gets better. I hope and pray that he can play football again. I feel really bad for this kid.
I’m just stunned that a linebacker got dropped to the floor with a punch. Doesn’t that seem odd? I boxed in the Marines and played highschool football so I know a little (very little) about what all that feels like. I would think that playing linebacker at Ohio State is more enduring than most things.
sportsMonkey – Since we’re being nit-picky, let me rephrase…
“The rumor in the articles I’ve been reading is that after the suckerpunch he hit his head on the concrete ground/floor… which is probably the point at which most of the damage was caused, not by the actual punch.”
Of course the person who punched him is ultimately responsible, I don’t know how you could read that sentence and think I’m trying to take the blame away from him. If someone gets punched and doesn’t hit their head on a concrete floor, they usually have less damage than when they do. That’s all I’m saying.