Helmet-to-Helmet Hit Caused Tyler Ulrich’s Death — SkimNews
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- Tyler Ulrich, 21, suffered a traumatic brain injury and brain bleed, and the Garland County Coroner's Office determined that helmet-to-helmet contact caused the fatal subdural hematoma.
- Tyler Ulrich was hospitalized on Oct. 10 and died five days later after being injured in a group tackle during Southern Nazarene University's away game against Ouachita Baptist University.
- Tyler Ulrich was attended by paramedics on the field for nearly an hour before being transported to a nearby hospital.
- Dave Myrick said the play initially looked normal and that nothing seemed unusual until SNU players began waving for athletic trainers; medical staff were then joined by a county sheriff and Ulrich's mother.
- Southern Nazarene University initially described Ulrich's death as the result of a "traumatic injury," but said it had not received the coroner's report; its president, football team and coaches attended a Celebration of Life service Sunday in Azle, Texas.
- Southern Nazarene University skipped the following week's game, then returned last Saturday and defeated Northwestern Oklahoma State University 60-37.
- National Center for Catastrophic Sport Injury Research data identifies Ulrich as one of two football players to have died from a traumatic head or neck injury during a game in the past nine years.
Why it matters: For **Southern Nazarene University**, the public account became more precise than the generic "traumatic injury" the school initially announced: helmet-to-helmet contact caused a subdural hematoma. The program then skipped one week before returning, while research data places Ulrich among only two football players to die from a traumatic head or neck injury during a game in nine years.
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