Former Washington RB Emeka Megwa sues Huskies program, claims Kalen DeBoer staff was medically negligent

Former Washington Huskies running back Emeka Megwa has filed a civil lawsuit, according to the Seattle Times, against the University. He’s seeking damages for medical negligence.

Megwa played for Washington between 2021-22, including under current Alabama head coach Kalen DeBoer in 2022, and, according to the Seattle Times, is seeking damages from current and former members of the school’s sports medicine staff, football coaching staff, athletic trainers, and physical therapists. In total, nine current and former staffers are named.

In particular, this relates to his rehab from an ACL injury that he claims resulted in a second ACL injury.

The Seattle Times reports that the complaint states that no doctors or physicians were consulted, despite Megwa reporting pain in his knee months before a second ACL tear was found. On top of that, it also alleges that he was pressured into practicing before he was completely healthy, was castigated by coaches for not being able to practice, and was dismissed from the team following his second reconstructive knee surgery.

“The main thing he wants is to prevent this from happening to other student athletes,” Megwa’s attorney Andrew Ackley told the Seattle Times. “When there’s a major reconstructive surgery, the surgeons should be the ones saying what these athletes should be available to do, not trainers or coaches.”

Emeka Megwa was a four-star recruit in the Class of 2021 and was the 25th ranked running back in the country. Unfortunately, Megwa has a history of ACL injuries dating back to his time in high school. He, in large part, because former head coach Jimmy Lake promised Washington would properly manage his injuries, reclassified and enrolled early at the school.

Dr. Albert Gee at UW Medical Center, and the UW Athletics team physician, oversaw his recovery. It was an estimated nine to 12 months of recovery. At the end of that, he was supposed to be ready for Fall Camp in 2022. Things seemed to be going well under that plan until Lake was fired. Shortly after that, Kalen DeBoer replaced him. It was under DeBoer that things changed in his rehab, according to the Seattle Times.

“I think it’s fair to say he felt he was well taken care of and valued with the Jimmy Lake crew,” Ackley said. “And there was a real change in attitude toward him with the new coaching staff. They didn’t know him. They didn’t recruit him. And they may not have known as well what his medical history was, but either way, it’s inexcusable what they put him through.”

At this time, Gee had said in a note that there was no rush to get him back on the field and that he could be ready for spring ball.

In January of 2022, the Seattle Times reports that Megwa says he was told to participate in a team workout despite not getting clearance to do so. Later in January, he reported pain in his leg and was given shoes instead of being sent to a doctor, according to the complaint. Then, in February, he felt pain while doing a lateral shuffling drill. At the time, it was determined the ligaments in his knee were stable. When he continued to report pain and swelling, he was given painkillers.

According to the complaint, he was cursed at and berated at the time for not being able to participate. During this time, his knee health continued to deteriorate and by March he wasn’t physically able to run. That’s when a second ACL tear was discovered, setting him back potentially years in his recovery.

In the Seattle Times’ reporting on the story, the lawsuit also alleges that after he had a second surgery a Washington coach told him to enter the Transfer Portal and leave the program.

Again, Megwa’s lawyer emphasized that he wanted to protect others at Washington or another school, and “have them get the same protections as any other work who’s going back to work after an injury.”

Emeka Megwa ended up walking on at Oklahoma after leaving the Washington program. For his part, Kalen DeBoer left Washington to become the head coach at Alabama ahead of the 2024 season.