The Greg Brooks-Brian Kelly saga took an ugly turn Thursday, as Brooks’ family pushed back against the LSU Tigers head coach’s claim that he was “by Brooks’ side” throughout Brooks’ long recovery from a rare form of brain cancer.
After the family said on “Good Morning America” that the coach was distant and failed to care for Brooks during his medical recovery, Kelly claimed he visited “multiple times.” Greg Brooks Sr. is firing back against Kelly’s “factually incorrect statements.”
Greg Brooks Sr.: ‘Coach Kelly Has Not Contacted Greg Jr. in Over 16 Months’
The back-and-forth “he said, she said,” between the family of former LSU football player Greg Brooks Jr. and head coach Brian Kelly continued Thursday when Brooks’ father.
Below is a statement provided by Greg Brooks Jr.’s attorneys to College Sports Network.
“It was difficult for Greg Brooks Jr. to listen to LSU Coach Brian Kelly say he was by his side through this ordeal and then accuse his father of making a false statement when the reality is that Coach Kelly has not contacted Greg Jr. in over 16 months,” the statement reads.
“Neither Coach Kelly nor LSU has denied what Greg’s father said during the GMA interview: that Greg has not heard from Coach Kelly since October 2023, long before the lawsuit was filed. LSU and Coach Kelly cannot deny this because it is true. Ironically, it was Coach Kelly who made factually inaccurate statements in March of 2024 when he told the media that Greg was walking, which obviously was not true.
“Coach Kelly would have known that had he simply picked up the phone and called. Greg Jr. looks forward to having his day in court, where the truth will come to light, and in the meantime, he will be focusing on his health and recovery.”
The Brooks family is currently in the midst of a lawsuit against LSU and its medical center, alleging negligence that led to Brooks’ brain tumor.
The surgery and ensuing recovery has left Brooks “permanently disabled” and unable to walk, more than a year later.
The lawsuit alleges that the LSU coaching staff forced Brooks to practice while ill by threatening his starting position and that the medical team refused to refer him to a neurological specialist “for weeks.”
As this is an ongoing lawsuit, not all details are public record.
[EDITOR’S NOTE: College Sports Network will continue to update this story as more information becomes available. This is an ongoing story.]
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