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Mother of Indiana freshman lineman says son is ‘struggling’ with COVID-19 virus, was taken to emergency room
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The mother of Indiana University football player who was infected with the COVID-19 virus is speaking out about her son’s ongoing struggles with the illness.
Debbie Rucker, the mother of Indiana freshman offensive lineman Brady Feeney, took to Facebook on Monday to share her son’s story about battling COVID-19. She’s asking for thoughts and prayers right now, as Feeney continues to have issues with the virus.
In the strong Facebook post, Rucker states that Feeney contracted the virus while participating in workouts while on Indiana’s campus with the football team. In the days since testing positive, Feeney has endured breathing issues, possible heart problems and has been taken to the emergency room.
Below is what Rucker posted on her Facebook account:
” I am not one to post about personal family issues because I am not one to ask for help very often! However, in this crazy, chaotic world where a global crisis is not being taken seriously I have decided to post my personal family crisis with the permission of my son, Brady who is struggling with this virus! I am asking each of my friends as a request from my HEART, PLEASE take this serious and wear a mask, excercise social distancing and realize by wearing a mask you could be helping protect those that you love! PLEASE
“Here is our story…
“My son was negative when he got tested at the beginning of volunteer workouts. Within three weeks he and multiple others tested positive. His university has done everything right by shutting down workouts and retesting the whole team.
“Unfortunately this virus hit my son very hard compared to most of his teammates. Here was a kid in perfect health, great physical condition and due to the virus ended up going to the ER because of breathing issues. After 14 days of hell battling the horrible virus, his school did additional testing on all those that were positive. My son even recieved extra tests because he was one of the worst cases.
“Now we are dealing with possible heart issues! He is still experiencing additional symptoms and his blood work is indicating additional problems. Bottom line, even if your son’s schools do everything right to protect them, they CAN’T PROTECT THEM!!
“I pray my son recovers from this horrible virus and can lead a healthy normal life!! Football does not really matter when your child’s health is in jeopardy!! Think about it!!! My heart is hurting and I pray for all of these kids and for the people making the decisions about the season!!!
Feeney, a native of St. Louis, Missouri, was a member of Indiana’s incoming 2020 recruiting class.
When Indiana experienced a high number of positive tests for COVID-19 among its student-athletes, it shut down workouts for a brief period of time. However, those workouts have resumed following another round of testing.
The B1G has already taken the step of eliminating nonconference competitions for the upcoming season in an effort to better control schedule flexibility, testing protocols and safety guidelines. It has not made a concrete decision on the 2020 football season yet.
Dustin grew up in the heart of Big Ten country and has been in sports media since 2010. He has been covering Big Ten football since 2014. You can follow him on Twitter: @SchutteCFB