Mangino: KU losing lineman to illness

By David Mitchell     Jun 15, 2004

Kansas University offensive lineman Justin Henry won’t return to the Jayhawk football team in the fall because of a gastrointestinal disorder, coach Mark Mangino said Monday.

“We feel badly for him because he’s a great kid,” Mangino said of the junior, who had played center and guard for KU. “He was working hard and had a chance to be a real contributor for us, but this illness he has really has taken it out of him. He’s just physically unable to participate.”

KU disclosed Henry’s cyclic vomiting syndrome after he sat out the spring scrimmage.

The lineman from Hoyt was listed as 6-foot-4 and 285 pounds during the 2003 season, but the disorder makes it difficult for him to keep food down and his weight up.

KU team physician Larry Magee said people afflicted with the disorder could lose as much as 40 pounds in just a few weeks.

“Although it’s not life threatening, it is a problem for an offensive lineman at this level of play who’s trying to maintain weight,” Magee said. “We felt it’s more important for Justin to concentrate on his health and school, and we’ve decided to disqualify him from participation. At this stage, it would be very difficult for him to compete because he just can’t keep his weight up.”

Mangino said Henry’s medical hardship would allow him to remain on scholarship.

“I think Justin is frustrated with having to deal with it,” Magee said, “but he’s decided that there are more important things in life than football.”

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