Donations have surged for hospitalized college football player Medrick Burnett Jr. after Alabama A&M wrongly announced his death.
Burnett’s school shared an update claiming he had passed away on Tuesday evening at 20 years old, a month after he suffered complications from a head injury in a game.
‘Today, our Bulldog family is heartbroken by the loss of Medrick Burnett Jr.,’ Alabama A&M Director of Athletics Dr. Paul A. Bryant said via news release.
‘Medrick was more than an exceptional athlete; he was a remarkable young man whose positive energy, leadership, and compassion left an indelible mark on everyone who knew him.
‘While words cannot adequately express our grief, we are humbled by the strength of his family, who stood by his side throughout this unimaginable ordeal.’
However, TMZ Sports has since reported that, according to Burnett’s family, the statement was false and Burnett Jr. is still fighting for his life.
College football star Medrick Burnett Jr’s school announced that he had died on Tuesday
His family members are said to have told local outlets that he has not passed away, before the school quickly deleted its article announcing the player’s death.
‘We retract the news of the passing of Medrick Burnette Jr, that was originally advised by an immediate family member on Tuesday evening,’ Alabama A&M was quoted as saying in a new statement. ‘Our staff acted accordingly to the wishes of the family member to inform the A&M community and beyond of this unfortunate occurrence.’
Despite the bizarre error, donations to a GoFundMe page set up in Burnett’s honor have since surged with $41,471 now raised at the time of writing. The family have set a target of $100,000.
Posting on the site, his sister Dominece wrote: ‘His 20th birthday was October 27th and one of the worst birthdays for us because he was in ICU and not doing well. He had several brain bleeds and swelling of the brain. He had to have a tube to drain to relieve the pressure, and after 2 days of severe pressure, we had to opt for a craniotomy, which was the last resort to help try to save his life.
‘He needs and is going to need a lot of care, and all of his family live out of state from where he is located, and they also need to be able to have housing to be there to support and help him in this journey. We do not know what lies ahead yet, but we need all the prayers, support, resources, and donations to help him and his family keep giving him a fighting chance to survive.
‘The donations sent will be used for his parents to be by his side due to them living over 2000 miles away from where he is hospitalized. The money will go for them to have temporary housing 900 a week, hospital fees (parking is $100 a week etc), and whatever may arise during this long journey (rental car fees a week estimated$350 ), gas to get amount etc). His mom (she has not been able to work since this injuries occurred) will have access to the funds directly to take care of all the things that is needed during this time.
But the Alabama A&M star, who suffered complications from a head injury in a game last month, is said to still be alive and fighting for his life in hospital
‘Thank you for all your support, care, donations, prayers, resources, and more it is truly appreciated.’
Burnett is in his first season with the Bulldogs as a redshirt freshman after spending 2023 at fellow HBCU Grambling State.
He reportedly suffered the head injury while defending a kickoff in the Magic City Classic, an annual rivalry game against Alabama State on October 26, while colliding with an opposing player.
Burnett is a native of Lakewood, California and attended Mayfair High School.
