Former College Football WR Bru McCoy Suddenly Retires After NFL Draft
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources.
Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content.
Former University of Southern California and University of Tennessee wide receiver Bru McCoy is medically retiring from football, he announced Tuesday on social media.
"It's with a heavy heart but a feeling of gratitude that I share with you guys that I made the difficult decision to medically retire from football," McCoy wrote in a statement. "This has been one of the toughest decisions of my life, but after careful consideration with my doctors, family, and people closest to me I've come to the conclusion that it's the right path for my long-term health and well-being."
More news: Jets Quarterback Suddenly Retires From NFL in Shocking Announcement
McCoy initially committed to USC as a five-star recruit in the class of 2019. He graduated early from Mater Dei High School, where he was teammates with quarterback Bryce Young, also a USC commit who decommitted and flipped to the University of Alabama.
After Kliff Kingsbury shockingly spurned USC to become the head coach of the Arizona Cardinals, McCoy transferred to the University of Texas. He then left Texas and returned to USC.
McCoy's injury issues began in 2019, when he took a redshirt season due to symptoms that were never diagnosed. In 2022, after transferring to Tennessee, McCoy played his first full season, appearing in 12 games and catching 52 passes for 667 yards and four touchdowns.
However, in 2023, he played in just five games, suffering a season-ending displaced fracture of his right ankle.
"As many of you know I came back and played last year after what could've been a career ending injury," McCoy continued in his statement. "I felt it was my responsibility to myself, coaches, family, and most importantly the community I have here in Knoxville to give back for all of the love that has been shown to me. I want to take a moment to sincerely thank each and every one of you who has supported me throughout my journey for it means more than you could ever know."
In 2024, McCoy was back for a full season, playing 12 games and reeling in 39 receptions for 472 yards and two touchdowns. He was a captain for five games, and even attended the 2025 Senior Bowl.
McCoy, now 24 years old, was among the top undrafted free agents, but Fox Sports NFL insider Jordan Schultz said his not being drafted was by design.
"My understanding is it was made known during the draft not to select him," Schultz wrote, "and now we know the reason why."
GREEN BAY, WISCONSIN - APRIL 24: Fans gather at the NFL Draft stage during the first round of the 2025 NFL Draft at Lambeau Field on April 24, 2025 in Green Bay, Wisconsin.
GREEN BAY, WISCONSIN - APRIL 24: Fans gather at the NFL Draft stage during the first round of the 2025 NFL Draft at Lambeau Field on April 24, 2025 in Green Bay, Wisconsin.As for McCoy, he's looking forward to what's next in his life after football.
"Although this chapter in my football journey has come to an end, I believe this is just the beginning," McCoy wrote. "I'm excited about the next steps, and I'm determined to continue pushing myself in new directions. This is not the end of my pursuit of greatness, just a new beginning."
More news: Shedeur Sanders Makes Shocking Admission After Slipping to 5th Round of NFL Draft
For more football news, head over to Newsweek Sports.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Fox Sports
29 minutes ago
- Fox Sports
Za'Darius Smith: 'Hopefully,' I'm back with the Detroit Lions
Defensive end Za'Darius Smith remains a free agent, but, in the end, he wants to be back with the team that he went to the playoffs with last season, that being the Detroit Lions — who cut him in March. "Hopefully, I can get back to Detroit because the coaching staff and everybody in the front office are great," Smith told USA TODAY Sports. "When I'm there, I feel like a leader and like I can influence the young guys and do great things. Hopefully, I can get back to where I want to be in Detroit." Smith split the 2024 season with the Cleveland Browns and Lions, who acquired him at the NFL trade deadline after suffering myriad defensive injuries, including to star pass rusher Aidan Hutchinson, a 2023 Pro Bowler. In all, Smith finished the 2024 regular season with a combined nine sacks and 35 combined tackles. Smith ranked 21st among edge defenders in pass-rush grade (76.5), 33rd in overall grade (74.7) and 85th in run-defense grade (62.8) according to Pro Football Focus. Now, should Smith return to Detroit, there are some changes on the coaching side, as the Lions lost defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn — who became the new head coach of the New York Jets — and promoted former linebackers coach Kelvin Sheppard to the position. They also have a new defensive line coach in Kacy Rodgers, among many other coaching changes. The 32-year-old Smith, who expressed that he's focused on "getting a ring now and winning a championship," thinks he and Hutchinson could be a special duo off the edge. "I'm still a veteran. He's [Hutchinson] still a young guy. I can help him with a lot of things. He's already great, but as a player, there are some tools that I know that I can help him with," Smith said. "And there are some things as a young guy that he can help me with." Smith, a three-time Pro Bowler, spent the first four seasons of his NFL career with the Baltimore Ravens (2015-18), followed by a three-year stint with the Green Bay Packers (2019-21), one season with the Minnesota Vikings (2022) and a season-plus with the Browns before being acquired by the Lions during the 2024 season. Elsewhere, Detroit re-signed defensive tackle Levi Onwuzurike, defensive end Marcus Davenport and linebacker Ezekiel Turner to one-year deals apiece, while adding defensive tackle Roy Lopez and selecting Ohio State defensive tackle Tyleik Williams with the No. 28 pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. Last season, the Lions went 15-2 and claimed the No. 1 seed in the NFC before losing to the Washington Commanders in the NFC divisional round. Detroit's defense surrendered 244.0 passing yards (30th in the NFL), 98.4 rushing yards (fifth), 342.4 total yards (20th) and 20.1 points (seventh) per game. Want great stories delivered right to your inbox? Create or log in to your FOX Sports account, and follow leagues, teams and players to receive a personalized newsletter daily! FOLLOW Follow your favorites to personalize your FOX Sports experience National Football League Detroit Lions Za'Darius Smith recommended Get more from National Football League Follow your favorites to get information about games, news and more in this topic
Miami Herald
an hour ago
- Miami Herald
Why Jaelan Phillips' injury history has prepared him for a critical 2025 season
The last couple of years have been rather rough for Jaelan Phillips. After a solid, two-year start to his NFL career, the Miami Dolphins edge rusher suffered a ruptured Achilles that prematurely ended his 2023 season in Week 12. Then, after an arduous rehab, Phillips returned at the start of 2024 — only to play four games before safety Jordan Poyer flew into his leg against the Buffalo Bills, tearing his ACL. Most people would have contemplated retirement, succumbing to the sadness of back-to-back major injuries. Phillips, however, isn't most people. The biggest hurdle was 'finding the balance of obviously being locked in, staying on top of the recovery but also giving myself a little bit of grace and a little bit of break,' Phillips said Wednesday. 'Obviously I went through a lot these last couple of years so I felt like I needed to take a little bit of time to kind of regather myself and then it allowed me to come back with a lot more clarity and focus and motivation.' With both the ACL and Achilles healed, Phillips will look to complete his first full season since 2022. The timing, however, cannot be better as 2025 will be a contract year for the five-year veteran. And as much as this could be considered 'put up or shut up' time, Phillips' only worry is what happens between the two lines, a point of praise for coach Mike McDaniel. 'If you can't control injuries, you have to be disciplined enough not to think about it and think about your technique and fundamentals,' McDaniel said Wednesday. 'We have the appropriate person for that challenge in Jaelan Phillips.' Added Phillips: 'I'm definitely just trying to stay focused. That's all you can do — stay present, stay focused. Because obviously, it's a big year and so it's not like I'm going to ignore that fact but at the same time, I can't do anything about six or seven months from now.' Adversity, however, is nothing new to Phillips. In late 2018, the edge rusher medically retired from the University of California, Los Angeles Bruins, citing a plethora of concussions and other injuries. Phillips subsequently transferred to the University of Miami where, following a year off, he returned to the football field in 2020. 'I think I went through a lot and experienced a lot in my time at UCLA and transitioning over to Miami,' Phillips said in Jan. 2022. 'So I think that's really taught me a lot about how I want to carry myself and what impact I want to have on this world. So for me, just understanding that it's way bigger than myself and it's bigger than any on-the-field or off-the-field accomplishment I can do.' The Achilles injury seemed to provide similar clarity as 'it helped me recenter myself as a person.' 'It's just another good reminder of even when you think you've overcome adversity, something's always going to come,' Phillips said, explaining that the rehab gave him the chance to develop 'relationships' that he usually wouldn't be able to due to the intensity of the NFL schedule. 'It's just very humbling, very sobering.' Such a mindset earned him praise from fellow edge rusher Bradley Chubb who rehabbed with Phillips as the former recovered from a devastating knee injury. 'He's a warrior,' edge rusher said. 'I like to surround myself with like-minded people and I feel like I'm a warrior in terms of how I handle adversity and he's the same puts his head down and he might have a bad day or two but it never affected how he approach the work, how he approached the task.' A healthy Phillips could give the Dolphins one of the most elite defensive fronts in football. The trio of edge rushers — Phillips, Chubb and Chop Robinson — combined with defensive tackles Zach Sieler and Kenneth Grant on the inside would be a nightmare for opposing offensive coordinators nightmares in 2025, something that certainly has him and coaches alike smiling. 'It would be exciting,' Phillips said. 'Chop has been having a hell of an OTAs. His improvement from last year to this year is so noticeable. It's insane, especially if you know the nitty gritty of it. I'm really proud of Chop and really excited to see how he's going to keep progressing. Obviously Bradley looks great. I feel really good so that's going to be fun.'
Newsweek
an hour ago
- Newsweek
2025 U.S. Open: Complete Record-Matching $21.5M Prize Purse by Place
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. While speaking on the eve of the 125th U.S. Open, United States Golf Association (USGA) CEO Mike Whan officially revealed that the event's purse will be $21.5 million, with $4.3 million going to the winner. This is the same amount allocated for the 2024 edition, tying the record for the largest purse distributed at any major championship in history. "Our purse is $21.5 million. Winner's check is $4.3 [million]. We didn't raise our purse this year," Whan said. "When I started at the USGA just four years ago, our purse was $12.5 [million], so I feel comfortable that we've been a leader in moving fast and bigger." The U.S. Open Trophy seen at Oakmont Country Club on May 4, 2016 in Oakmont, Pennsylvania. The U.S. Open Trophy seen at Oakmont Country Club on May 4, 2016 in Oakmont, Pennsylvania. Justin K. Aller/Getty Images As for the winner's paycheck, it ranks as the second-highest for an individual professional golf event, behind only the $4.5 million awarded to the winner of the PGA Tour's PLAYERS Championship. It's certainly come a long way since the $150 Horace Rawlins received for winning the event's foundational edition in 1895. The US Open winner's paycheck reached $1,000 for the first time in 1929, but the winner was the legendary Bobby Jones, who didn't collect the prize money because he played as an amateur. The $10,000 barrier was broken in 1959, when Billy Casper received $12,000 for his victory. Just 26 years later, the $100,000 barrier was surpassed, as Andy North received $103,000 when he won in 1985. It couldn't be anyone but Tiger Woods who was the first to receive $1 million for winning the US Open, which he did with his epic victory in 2000. US Open prize money payout This is how the 2025 US Open purse will be distributed. The amounts may vary depending on ties: 1 $4,300,000 2 $2,322,000 3 $1,445,062 4 $1,013,040 5 $843,765 6 $748,154 7 $674,491 8 $604,086 9 $546,720 10 $502,174 11 $458,280 12 $423,729 13 $394,829 14 $364,407 15 $338,332 16 $316,602 17 $299,218 18 $281,834 19 $264,450 20 $247,067 21 $232,073 22 $217,080 23 $202,521 24 $189,048 25 $177,314 26 $167,319 27 $159,713 28 $152,977 29 $146,458 30 $139,939 31 $133,420 32 $126,901 33 $120,382 34 $114,515 35 $109,735 36 $104,954 37 $100,391 38 $96,045 39 $91,699 40 $87,353 41 $83,007 42 $78,661 43 $74,315 44 $69,969 45 $65,623 46 $61,712 47 $57,801 48 $54,107 49 $51,934 50 $49,761 51 $48,457 52 $47,370 53 $46,501 54 $46,067 55 $45,632 56 $45,197 57 $44,763 58 $44,328 59 $43,894 60 $43,459 61 $43,024 62 $42,590 63 $42,155 64 $41,721 65 $41,286 66 $40,851 67 $40,417 68 $39,982 69 $39,548 70 $39,113 More Golf: Scottie Scheffler reveals Venmo payments from fans, requests for cash
