Tee Shepard Has a Heart Condition

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March 28th, 2012 at 4:32 AM
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hart20
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Tee Shepard Has a Heart Condition

While we all knew that Tee Shepard left Notre Dame recently, we didn't know the reason. We liked to think that it was Brian Kelly's anger, maybe a dash of homesickness, or even a new found hatred for Notre Dame. In reality, Shepard is facing a potentially life-threating heart condition.

“I had known since high school that there was something with my heart, but I never knew it was anything serious,” Shepard said. “When I took my physical at Notre Dame, they saw it right away. I wasn’t sure what to do, so I dropped out and came home to figure out what to do next."

Shepard does say that he's planning to return to football though and I, for one,  wish him good luck. 

Link (Full article is paywalled, quote is in preview): http://insider.espn.go.com/blog/ncfrecruiting/west/post?id=2483

Yep, that's Simba made out of a pineapple.

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March 28th, 2012 at 4:39 AM | Hopefully he's able to (Score:5 Normal)
Magnus
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Joined: 07/17/2008
MGoPoints: 27450

Hopefully he's able to get/stay healthy.  It's a good thing they caught it before it became a serious issue.

Twitter - Recruiting Update: May 20

March 28th, 2012 at 5:34 AM | I don't have a subscription....... (Score:1 Normal)
HELLE
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does anyone know why he left school? Did Notre Dame tell him he couldn't play? I understand he probably went home to clear his head but if he can't play football, then why not stay at Notre Dame and get an education? Unless they took his scholarship away. I don't have any idea how this works. Say a Michigan recruit comes in with a medical condition and can't play, does he still get some kind of scholarship from the university?

Go Blue!

March 28th, 2012 at 7:06 AM | I believe that's a medical (Score:3 Normal)
BlockM
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I believe that's a medical hardship and he could get a full scholarship for all four years. 

@pnbloem | Ultra-MGoBoard

March 28th, 2012 at 7:54 AM | if that's the case... (Score:1 Normal)
HELLE
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he should have waited and thought it out at Notre Dame. You don't just walk away from an education no matter how disappointed one may be.

Go Blue!

March 28th, 2012 at 8:51 AM | The kid just found out that (Score:4 Normal)
turd ferguson
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The kid just found out that he has a potentially life-threatening heart condition and might not be able to play the sport that he loves and probably expected to play for a very long time. I think you could be a little more sympathetic to his desire to go home for a bit and collect his thoughts.

March 28th, 2012 at 8:56 AM | Not to mention that, at (Score:1)
justingoblue
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Not to mention that, at eighteen, most of us would want our parents around for rounds of serious meetings with doctors and possibly multiple tests at hospitals. For as much grief as Kelly (rightfully) gets on here, I'm assuming he would do whatever he could to let the kid continue his studies at ND when he can.

Go Blue!

March 28th, 2012 at 10:17 AM | Ok but why leave the school permanently? (Score:2 Normal)
93Grad
Joined: 07/26/2011
MGoPoints: 822

why not take a temporary leave so that you don't lose your scholarship or the free medical treatment?  I'm sure he could have taken enough time to go home and collect his thoughts without losing his scholly. 

 

March 28th, 2012 at 12:25 PM | So let's see... HELLE and (Score:2 Normal)
turd ferguson
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So let's see...

HELLE and 93grad opened their accounts on the exact same day, have the same tendencies with capitalizing sentences, and are making the same obnoxious, insensitive point about a kid who was just diagnosed with a life-threatening heart condition.

I was wondering who the hell +1'd HELLE's point.  How many accounts do you have?

March 28th, 2012 at 4:46 PM | lol... (Score:1 Normal)
HELLE
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I have one for everything one of my personalities, come on lol. I was just saying that a ND scholarship doesn't come around everyday.

Go Blue!

March 28th, 2012 at 8:26 AM | Also, if they had pulled his (Score:2 Normal)
cbuswolverine
Joined: 08/14/2008
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Also, if they had pulled his scholarship over this the whole world would know by now.

March 28th, 2012 at 6:51 AM | This just makes me think of (Score:2)
swan flu
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This just makes me think of Fabrice Muamba collapsing on the pitch a few weeks ago. Terrifying. I hope he gets good medical advice and I hope he stays healthy

Tenim un nom el sap tothom. Barca, Barca, BAAARCA!

March 28th, 2012 at 8:16 AM | Muamba seems to be recovering (Score:2)
Volverine
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Muamba seems to be recovering well, so we can only hope Shepard has a similar path (and never suffers the collape Muamba did). 

University of Tom Brady, B.A. '10; University of Peyton Manning, J.D. '13.

March 28th, 2012 at 9:30 AM | In America (Score:3 Normal)
Cronan the Barbarian
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its called the field.

Flying Eagles original member

March 28th, 2012 at 11:29 AM | Typical American (Score:3 Normal)
profitgoblue
Joined: 09/01/2009
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99% of the world calls it a "pitch" but we have to be different and call football "soccer" and call the pitch a "field."  This is why other countries hate us.

 

Disgruntled former moderator.  I got a lot of problems with you people!

March 28th, 2012 at 11:48 AM | Correction (Score:3 Normal)
saveferris
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It's one of the reasons other countries hate us. 

 

"...what do you say, is it the new Bluesmobile or what?"

"Fix the cigarette lighter."

March 28th, 2012 at 8:31 AM | Maybe, he didn't want to be (Score:1)
TexanGOBLUE
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Maybe, he didn't want to be so far from home. It seems he is not ready to give up on football just yet. He might want to seek treatment or more medical opinions near home. If he plays in SoCal he will close to family and DRs. I wouldn't want to live so far from home if I wanted to give football another shot especially if something were to happen.

'Try growing up in Texas a Michigan WOLVERINE'.

March 28th, 2012 at 9:00 AM | Is there any reason he (Score:1)
R Kelly
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Is there any reason he can't re-enroll at ND for the fall semester and join up with the team in august again?  

March 28th, 2012 at 9:45 AM | yes (Score:3 Normal)
Mr Miggle
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It's unlikely ND will clear him to play. I would expect ND to take him back and put him on a medical hardship though. He's probably hoping for a second opinion and a chance to play elsewhere. Brings back memories of Jeff Zuttah.  

Eating is murder.

March 28th, 2012 at 11:24 AM | Makes sense, thank you (Score:1)
R Kelly
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Makes sense, thank you.  I was actually wondering this back before we knew he had the heart condition and thought he was just homesick.  So I didn't think of it in terms of being medically cleared to play,  but I guess either way the answer is really the same.  Hypothetically its still possible (i.e.there is no rule preventing him from coming back this fall, it most likely just a matter of personal choice).

March 28th, 2012 at 9:23 AM | Now if he had a concussion (Score:1)
Princetonwolverine
Joined: 10/10/2010
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Now if he had a concussion and blurred vision ND would have had him back in the next play.

March 28th, 2012 at 9:49 AM | Interesting that he says he (Score:2)
RakeFight
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Interesting that he says he plans on returning to football... I suspect that may be a little bit of denial talking (which is natural).  Most "serious" heart problems that would prevent you from playing football are not curable.  The most common cause of sudden cardiac death in young athletes is hypertrophic cardiomyopathy.  While treatable, there's no doctor in his/her right mind that would clear you for sports given the risk of sudden death.  Then again, it's possible he has something repairable like a VSD (hole in his heart)... that might go along with him knowing there was something wrong and planning on getting back to football eventually.

Best of luck to the kid and his family.

March 28th, 2012 at 9:58 AM | He's going to return to (Score:2)
brandanomano
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He's going to return to football just like Jiri Fischer returned to the Red Wings.

Best of luck to Tee and his health. I can only imagine how horrible it is to have your dreams coming true and then have them ripped away from you because of something outside of your control.

Special Teams means special times!

March 28th, 2012 at 11:31 AM | He could have a conductivity (Score:1)
samsoccer7
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He could have a conductivity issue Which would benefit from an ablation and seemingly make him essentially "normal."

March 28th, 2012 at 10:05 AM | Why leave? I agree- why (Score:0 Redundant)
March 28th, 2012 at 10:49 AM | ?heart problem (Score:3 Normal)
WeisstheHutt
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As a congenital cardiologist, I'm kind of curious as to what he has... I agree with RakeFight above.  Playing the odds it's probably hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, in which case no one will every sign off on him playing football.  One of the other sites suggested that the family felt he might be cleared again over the summer to play again, I can't get through the paywall, but it doesn't sounds like the actual diagnosis has been made public. Hope it's not something bad and that he gets good advice.

 

 

March 28th, 2012 at 11:43 AM | What do you make of his (Score:2)
RakeFight
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What do you make of his statement that he knew he had a heart problem, but didn't know it was serious?  What else would be in his differential?  (that's why I suggested VSD... maybe previous docs heard the murmur, but blew it off (no pun intended))  But, alas, I'm just a lowly rheumatologist.

Did you train at the U?  (Med school '01, Fellowship '07)

March 28th, 2012 at 12:23 PM | not sure (Score:2)
WeisstheHutt
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Hard to tell from the story.  One could speculate that he was told he had a heart murmur but that it was innocent and didn't need anything else done. If he had structural heart disease, would consider atrial septal defect or ventricular septal defect. ASD probably a little more likely as the murmur would be less specific and more likely sound like an innocent murmur.  A small VSD would not require any further evaluation or treatment (but would cause a prominent murmur that any rheumatologist could hear). An ASD could get closed (likely in the cath lab) and then likely return without restriction. Because they're keeping this kind of quiet, that makes me wonder if they're worried he has hypertrophic cardiomyopathy.  All baseless speculation on my part.

U of M med peds residency 1998-2002, peds card 2003-2006.

 

 

March 28th, 2012 at 1:30 PM | Q's (Score:2 Normal)
M Wolve
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From a lowly 2nd year med student- Anything you can think that it may be outside of HCM, VSD, or ASD?  I'm sure you can think of another 10 things that it may be, but anything outside of those three that have a higher likelihood than a fraction of a percent?  It sounds like this is on the more extreme side of possibilities with him heading home and all, which makes it all the more surprising that they discovered his condition at ND and not prior.  Just trying to up my knowledge base and justify why I'm always on this site.  Thanks. 

Bring back Keith Jackson

March 28th, 2012 at 3:25 PM | additional ideas (Score:3 Normal)
WeisstheHutt
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I guess the other possibilities woud be non-severe valve abnormalities - pulmonary stenosis or aortic stenosis.  Those would both in the amorphous category where physicians may vary in their recommendations.  The other possiblities would be really rare things - Ebstein anomaly of the tricuspid valve, congenitally corrected transpostion (although I would be suprpised if somebody could be an elite athlete with a systemic right ventricle).  I suppose he could have a congenital coronary anomaly, although that isn't consistent with the story that he knew about it a while ago. 

 

From a teach the medical student standpoint, the most common congenital heart disease which present in adulthood are atrial septal defect and congenitally corrected transposition.  VSD's usually present younger because they have a promiment murmur.

March 28th, 2012 at 4:48 PM | Thank you. (Score:1)
M Wolve
Joined: 09/04/2011
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I effing love this board.

Bring back Keith Jackson

March 28th, 2012 at 8:35 PM | Pretty sure you dont get this (Score:1)
thisisme08
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Pretty sure you dont get this type of advice on RCMB.

Blue is Faster

March 28th, 2012 at 9:59 PM | Not many cardiology posts, so (Score:2)
WeisstheHutt
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Not many cardiology posts, so I have to use the chance to move towards 100 mgopoints

March 30th, 2012 at 9:19 AM | Think Spin Doctor, not Cardiology (Score:2 Normal)
zman713
Joined: 02/28/2011
MGoPoints: 1

Hello Everyone, former Ann Arbor resident, big UM fan, big Hoke fan(went to HS with him) and die hard college football fan living on the west coast.   I have to chime in on this one, since it seems everyone outside looking in continues to be very well meaning, but are continuing to believe what they 'read' instead of looking behind the scenes and getting the Paul Harvey "The Rest of the Story'

1.  Tee Shephard is a fine young man

2.  Tee Shephard has had many people trying to influence him and his father from a very early age, influence that, on one hand has helped him get his deserved national attention but, on the other hand, has gotten him suspended from playing HS ball for 2 of his 3 years of playing time in Fresno, CA.  Bad advice, illegal transfers, lots of people trying to 'work the system' for their own advantage, and they have gotten Tee into sad situations so far.

3.  Move forward to those same people helping him get to the next level.  Yes, Tee did have a heart condition, and yes, it needed some attention, and yes, the simple(as far as cardiac treatments go)  outpatient procedure was successful, and yes, all of this was known and COMPLETED at ND. 

Now, if I were Paul Harvey, I would have creative license here, as well as lawyers to back me up, and a public forum where investigative journalism is applauded.  However, I am not at liberty to share the information that Paul Harvey WOULD.  What I can tell you is this.   Tee Shephard is healthy enough to be cleared and to play football at ND.  Tee Shephard is not at Notre Dame because of other factors that are not health related.  The health related SPIN DOCTOR position is a convenient(serious, but convenient) way of positioning the situation so he will be able to petition the NCAA to NOT LOSE a year of eligibility due to his actions and choices he made. 

 

He already lost almost 2 years of elligibility in HS due to some of these similar choices. a We all know the NCAA is much more strict in enforcing their legal definitions under their scholarship and eligibility requirements than the local HS governing bodies are.  The Spin Doctors(not the cardiologists) are the ones putting out the one piece of the ENTIRE story that MAY give the young man a very tiny loophole to slide through, and maintain his full 4 years of eligibillity(5 counting redshirt) 

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