Player is paralyzed — injured in title match
Cal rugby player Robert Paylor suffered an injury that left him paralyzed below the chest during the Bears’ national-title victory Saturday, his family said in a statement released Tuesday by the university.
Paylor was hurt in a collision early in the Bears’ title match against Arkansas State at Stevens Stadium in Santa Clara. He was immobilized and taken off the field on a stretcher, and underwent surgery Saturday night at Santa Clara Valley Medical Center.
The precise nature of Paylor’s injury has not been disclosed, but his family said that his lower body is paralyzed and that he has “limited motion in his arms.”
“Our team is devastated by Rob’s injury,” Cal head coach Jack Clark said in a statement. “There aren’t words to adequately explain our sorrow for what he and his family are going through.
Rob is an extraordinary teammate, friend and student-athlete.”
A GoFundMe campaign set up to help defray medical expenses had raised more than $150,000 as of Tuesday afternoon. In one of the photos on the campaign page, Paylor is shown smiling while wearing a neck brace in his hospital bed. A goal of $1 million was set, based on the average expenses of the first year for a person in such a condition.
A Cal spokesman said the university has appropriate insurance policies that address sport-related injuries. “We also are aware of a GoFundMe page set up by a friend of the Paylor family that is intended to support unanticipated costs above and beyond traditional medical care,” he said.
The family said that it was “overwhelmed” by the outpouring of support it has received from the Cal rugby family and friends and people from around the country.
“We can’t find the words that express what that has meant to all of us in this very sad time in our lives,” the family said in the statement. “Robert is currently working on stabilizing his condition so he can start rehabilitation.
“This will be a long and difficult journey for Robert and his outcome is uncertain. But we know his faith and determination will get him as far as he can go in regaining mobility.”
A 6-foot-5, 233-pound sophomore from El Dorado Hills (El Dorado County), Paylor attended Jesuit High School in Carmichael. At Cal, he was a starter at the lock position, which places a premium on height and strength.
Clark, whose Bears routed Arkansas State 43-13 for their 32nd national championship Saturday, said Paylor “represents everything that is right and true about collegiate athletics.”
“His challenges will be severe, long in duration and difficult beyond measure,” Clark said. “Our team intends to be there with him every bit of the way.”