Shane Morris Concussion Drama: University of Michigan President Schlissel, AD Brandon Release Statements

University of Michigan president Mark Schlissel and director of athletics Dave Brandon each released statements on Tuesday commenting on the way the concussion of star quarterback Shane Morris was handled in the Wolverines' Oct. 27 game against Minnesota.

Even though, to many, Morris seemed visibly woozy following a helmet-to-helmet hit in the fourth quarter of the game, head coach Brady Hoke kept him in and maintained in a press conference on Monday that he saw no indications of a concussion in his QB at the time. In fact, the entire Michigan coaching staff denies seeing the hit at all, instead believing that Morris came away from the play with nothing more than an ankle injury. When the medical staff on the field cleared Morris's ankle for one more play, he re-entered the game and played — concussed.

The university's director of athletics, Dave Brandon, acknowledged in a statement released in the early hours of Tuesday morning that there was a communication breakdown among all involved.

"Following the game, a comprehensive concussion evaluation was completed and Shane has been evaluated twice since the game," Brandon said. "As of Sunday, Shane was diagnosed with a probable, mild concussion, and a high ankle sprain. That probable concussion diagnosis was not at all clear on the field on Saturday or in the examination that was conducted post-game. Unfortunately, there was inadequate communication between our physicians and medical staff and Coach Hoke was not provided the updated diagnosis before making a public statement on Monday. This is another mistake that cannot occur again."

Schlissel, meanwhile, ripped the entire athletics department for allowing a concussed Morris to play and says that he has instructed the athletics staff to provide him with a "thorough review" of the university's current in-game safety regulations.

"As the leader of our university community, I want to express my extreme disappointment in the events surrounding the handling of an on-field injury to one of our football players, Shane Morris. The health and safety of our entire student community, including all of our student-athletes, is my most important responsibility as university president," Schlissel said.

"Despite having one of the finest levels of team medical expertise in the country, our system failed on Saturday," Schlissel added. "We did not get this right and for this I apologize to Shane, his family, his teammates, and the entire Michigan family. It is a critical lesson to us about how vigilant and disciplined we must always be to ensure student-athlete safety. As president, I will take all necessary steps to make sure that occurs and to enforce the necessary accountability for our success in this regard."