by John Luciew | jluciew@pennlive.com | published February 17, 2025

As high-level college athletics increasingly resemble professional sports, there’s growing concern over who will protect the medical interests of players.

One advocate who is rising to prominence in this regard is Hershey orthopedic surgeon Dr. Scott Lynch.

Lynch, who was fired as Penn State football’s orthopedic consultant and medical director for Penn State Athletics in 2019, successfully sued over his ouster last May.  Lynch won a stunning $5.25 million jury verdict in Dauphin County Court against his employer, Penn State Health, and the boss who removed him from his Penn State medical roles, Dr. Kevin Black.

Now, Lynch, 63, is increasingly being seen as a national advocate for college players’ health and safety. The latest proof is a lengthy New York Times story chronicling Lynch’s clashes with Penn State Coach James Franklin over medical decisions regarding injured players. Lynch’s seven-day civil trial featured numerous examples of what his lawyer claimed was Franklin’s medical meddling.

The New York Times article called the Lynch case “a rare glimpse into how a high-profile college football team handled decisions around injuries — and revealed the pressure on trainers and doctors to greenlight students to get back on the field, despite reservations.”

The Times story included a statement from Penn State saying it was “extremely disappointed” in the jury’s verdict. The statement denied Franklin ever interfered with medical decisions and insisted its athletes participate only with the independent approval of the athletic department’s medical team, the Times wrote.

Franklin, who was dropped from Lynch’s lawsuit due to a court filing technicality, declined the Times’ request for comment.

Penn State Health is appealing the jury verdict, but the judge in the case, Andrew Dowling, issued an opinion urging appeals courts to deny it, writing that the defendants “prioritized their interest of protecting the Penn State Football team and Mr. Franklin rather than the health, safety and welfare of the football players,” the Times reported.

The top moments from Lynch’s trial are here.

The Times story points out that with college athletes poised to be paid directly by their schools, there are no labor unions protecting them. This is in contrast with their professional counterparts, whom the Times said “have more autonomy over their medical decisions.”

Lynch, in the extended Times interview was even more direct, saying:

“College sports are broken, and I think they’re beyond repair. There’s way too much money that’s getting in the way of people making good decisions. Nobody’s protecting the athletes.”

In a  detailed interview with PennLive following last May’s verdict, Lynch vowed to continue his fight against medical interference in injured player treatments.

He advocated for a system of independent medical oversight over college athletics that could be structured similar to the drug testing of athletes that’s conducted for all college athletic programs by an outside contractor.

“There has to be someone outside of the university who monitors all that stuff,” Lynch told PennLive. “I don’t think the NCAA or the Big10 could do it, either. They’re also in a conflict of interest because they’re making tons of money. It has to be a separate entity.”

MORE COVERAGE:
> Penn State player’s medical malpractice suit exposed doctor’s shortcomings, ex-athletic director says

>  Defense lawyer lays into fired Penn State football doctor for poor communication, mistakes

> Penn State player’s medical malpractice suit exposed doctor’s shortcomings, ex-athletic director says

>  Defense lawyer lays into fired Penn State football doctor for ‘poor communication, mistakes’

> Meeting with James Franklin preceded team doctor’s firing, supervisor says

> Top 10 moments (so far) from fired Penn State football doctor’s trial

> Emails detail deteriorating relationship between James Franklin, fired football doctor

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