Cal football player Ted Agu dies after training run

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A 21-year-old UC Berkeley football player who collapsed and died Friday morning after participating in a supervised training run with teammates had noticeable trouble during the workout and was escorted away by medical staff just before he lost consciousness.

A defensive lineman, Ted Agu of Bakersfield was a junior majoring in public health who planned to go to medical school.

Campus officials said Agu had no prior medical incidents with the team and declined to say whether he had any health problems, citing privacy rules.

They said Agu had been on an all-team training run about 7 a.m. Friday and was about 150 yards from the stadium when medical staff noticed he was "having some difficulty completing the workout," said Casey Batten, the athletes' doctor.

The staff put Agu on a golf cart, gave him water, and drove back to the stadium, said Batten, who described Agu as alert and talking. As the cart entered the North tunnel, Agu lost consciousness. Medical staff immediately began "high-quality CPR" and administered an automatic external defibrillator, Batten said.

He said paramedics took Agu to the emergency room at Alta Bates Medical Center in Berkeley, where he died.

Head football coach Sonny Dykes said he then called an emotional team meeting and gave the players the news.

Ted Agu of the California Golden Bears football team poses for a portrait in 2010 in Berkeley. Ted Agu of the California Golden Bears football team poses for a portrait in 2010 in Berkeley. Photo: Collegiate Images Photo: Collegiate Images Image 1 of / 7 Caption Close Cal football player Ted Agu dies after training run 1 / 7 Back to Gallery

"As a coach, you have the opportunity to be around a lot of special kids, day in and day out, and he was a very special young man," Dykes said later. "He just had a passion and energy for life that was deeply contagious. Our players loved him dearly and he was a big part of our family."

An emotional Sandy Barbour, Cal's athletics director, said, "There is not a greater tragedy than for us to lose one of our incredibly bright and passionate young people far too soon."

Agu stood 6-feet-1 and weighed 240 pounds. He was not among the high school athletic stars recruited with full scholarships by major universities more for their athletic prowess than their academic skills.

Rather, he was a "walk-on," who earned his way into Cal and loved football so much that he tried out for the team as a freshman in 2010 and made it, though he warmed the bench through many games. In 2013, he played in seven games and had six total tackles as a junior.

Agu's feelings for football were apparent in a description of the game he posted two weeks ago on Instagram beside an action photo of himself on the field:

"It's like your mother, it guides you, shapes you, and is the reason for the man you are today. Although you may get frustrated with it from time to time, you will always love it. THE GAME! Can't wait to get back at it."

Last spring, Agu finally got his full scholarship.

In an interview for Cal TV, water polo player Emily Turner asked Agu (pronounced uh-GOO) to tell about it.

He said he'd had no idea that he and other athletes were in store for an award when they walked into what they thought was a regular meeting - then heard their names called.

"It was an unbelievable experience," Agu said. "Wow, it was a shocker. I had to call my family.

"What I've been told is that we received those because (we) worked hard on the field and off the field. It was a really blessed event."

Agu's sudden death stunned his teammates and friends, who quickly turned to social media to express their grief.

"I am deeply saddened by the news of my old locker mate, Ted Agu's passing," wrote former Cal wide receiver Marvin Jones Jr. on Instagram, one of dozens of messages of condolence and shock. "He had one of the biggest hearts and was one of the most ambitious young men around."

Volleyball player Christina Renae tweeted: "RIP to my neighbor and friend Ted Agu. Gonna miss seeing that smile."

On campus, the gym at the football team's training center was empty, and a steady rain fell as a handful of athletes walked in and out.

One athlete with puffy eyes and wearing a football sweatshirt was too upset to speak.

As he walked out a back door of the stadium, he said, "Now is not the time, man, now is not the time."