Stringer May Have Ignored Warnings
Aug. 2 -- Temperatures dropped today across the northern Great Plains, but the change in weather likely won't do much to lighten the hearts of the Minnesota Vikings, who took the field for their first workout since teammate Korey Stringer died of heat stroke.
The Pro Bowl right tackle collapsed after practice on Tuesday morning and died 15 hours later. His body temperature was 108 degrees by the time the 6-4, 335-pound star was taken to a hospital near the team's Mankato, Minn., training facility.
The temperature Tuesday morning hit the low 90s, with humidity that made it feel like more than 100, and the Vikings worked out in full gear and pads, which experts say could have contributed to Stringer's death from heat stroke.
Tiki Barber, a halfback for the New York Giants, said pride and the determination to be a leader were also possible factors.
Stringer couldn't complete practice on Monday because of the heat, and according to team representatives on Tuesday he was determined not to quit. He practiced for two hours, vomiting several times but refusing to take himself off the field.
"I think it's a pride thing," Barber said on ABCNEWS's Good Morning America. "You've done it for so long. You don't want to let your teammates down. These guys depend on someone, and guys like Korey Stringer want to teach the younger guys how to be a professional and fight through things like this."
Pushing for the Team
National Football League Commissioner Paul Tagliabue issued a statement expressing sadness over Stringer's death. He did not indicate that the league was considering any change to its training rules, calling team doctors "extremely knowledgeable regarding the hydration of players, fluid replacement and other methods used to prevent heat stroke."
He said, though, that the NFL would make sure that all teams review their training practices.
Vikings coach Dennis Green is known around the league as a "player's coach," rather than a strict taskmaster who pushes his players to their physical limits.
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