Oklahoma junior defensive end Charles Tapper left the Sooners’ 45-33 win at West Virginia last weekend in the fourth quarter because of exhaustion brought on by his sickle cell trait, coach Bob Stoops said during Monday’s news conference.
Stoops says that Charles Tapper has sickle cell trait
Stoops says that Charles Tapper has sickle cell trait and therefore needs to monitor his level of exhaustion
— Sooner Nation (@SoonerNaton_1) September 22, 2014
Sickle cell trait is a genetic disorder that can be catastrophic, especially during extreme physical exertion.
California defensive end Ted Agu died in February during a training run, and it was reportedly because of complications from sickle cell trait.
Following OU’s 45-33 win over West Virginia on Saturday, Tapper appeared to be injured but Stoops said that Tapper’s issues were more exhaustion than injury. Saturday’s game was the first time that Tapper had to ask out of the game, as the exhaustion reached levels where he had to be careful.
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