Officials: Coger died after 40-minute outdoor workout

Stillwater, Okla. — Oklahoma State basketball player Tyrek Coger died from an enlarged heart after a 40-minute team workout on the football stadium stairs in hot weather, officials said Friday.

While the temperature was 99 degrees, it wasn't known if the weather played a role in Coger's death. The 22-year-old forward, who had recently transferred to OSU, did not appear to struggle during Thursday's workout at Boone Pickens Stadium, school spokesman Gary Shutt said at a news conference.

Coger sat down after the drills and the team noticed later he was having issues and called 911 about 5 p.m.; he was pronounced dead at a hospital at 6:23 p.m., Shutt said.

National Weather Service records show the temperature at 5 p.m. Thursday was 99 with humidity at 38 percent, meaning it felt like it was 106. The NCAA's Sports Medicine Handbook does not provide specific guidelines for when teams should avoid practicing in extreme temperatures, but recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention say sports teams should work out during parts of the day when the heat isn't severe.

“It was obviously hot yesterday, and you know, in competitive athletics, you're always pushing,” athletic director Mike Holder said, adding that the team will thoroughly examine its practices following Coger's death. “If you want to be great at something, you've got to push the envelope. That's what conditioning is all about.”

Coger died from an enlarged heart — “cardiomegaly with left ventricular hypertrophy” — and the manner of death was natural, Oklahoma State Medical Examiner's Office spokeswoman Amy Elliott said in an email Friday. The office's family assistance coordinator, Eddie Johnson, told The Associated Press that the final report is not likely to be ready and released for eight weeks.

Oklahoma State basketball coach Brad Underwood broke down Friday, noting that he was in Las Vegas on a recruiting trip when he learned of Coger's death.

“This is the hardest couple of days I've ever experienced in my coaching life. You say goodbye to players when they graduate and that's one thing,” Underwood said, pausing to wipe away tears with a towel. “Making that phone call to a mother is — there's no words.”