Former Texas Football Player Julius Whittier Files $50 Million Lawsuit vs. NCAA

Julius Whittier was an offensive lineman and tight end for the University of Texas from 1969 through 1972. After being diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer's disease in 2012, Whittier is filing a class-action lawsuit of $50 million against the NCAA.   

KEYE TV in Austin reported the news Tuesday, and also provided a link to the full lawsuit.

It includes all past football players who didn't play professionally but did play in the NCAA from 1960 through 2014 and suffered brain-related diseases or injuries.

Brian Davis of Statesman.com provided further details and highlighted the following:

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The lawsuit claims the NCAA breached its duty to protect players from head injuries even though the NCAA Constitution outlines that each member must 'protect the health of, and provide a safe environment for, each participating student-athletes.'

'The NCAA has ignored this duty and profited immensely from its inaction and denial, all to the detriment of the players,' the lawsuit states.

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Whittier, who was the first black letterman for the Longhorns' football program, claims that the traumatic collisions he endured on the football field led to his early onset Alzheimer's diagnosis.   

Trey Scott of 247Sports provided a relevant quote from Whittier for context:

The massive lawsuit is bound to bring more attention to player-safety issues in football, which has been a hot-button topic. One notable development in that vein has been several former NFL players discovered to have symptoms of CTE.

Whittier's lawsuit is looking out for the interests of those who weren't quite pro-caliber but still suffer from the lingering effects of the game.