University of Maryland President Wallace Loh’s decision to take “legal and moral responsibility” for mistakes made in treating 19-year-old football player Jordan McNair went against advice from the attorney general’s office, according to a source with knowledge of the proceedings.
Instead, Loh stood before a sea of cameras and microphones during an Aug. 14 press conference and apologized, saying the university took ownership for mistakes athletic training staff made on the day McNair suffered the heatstroke that would ultimately kill him.
University of Maryland football scandal surrounding Jordan McNair's death: Baltimore Sun coverage »
Loh’s announcement — which came roughly two months after McNair died and four days after ESPN published an explosive article about the football team’s culture — was a turning point in the scandal that’s overtaken the state flagship, and it helped catalyze a series of consequential moves.