Heat stroke expert: Jordan McNair likely would have recovered if treated properly by team officials

COLLEGE PARK, Md. - After the University of Maryland's stunning admission Tuesday that team officials improperly diagnosed and treated offensive lineman Jordan McNair, leading to his death after a May practice, a well-known sports medicine expert said McNair likely would have survived if treated correctly.

Dr. Douglas Casa is the chief executive officer of the University of Connecticut's Korey Stringer Institute. The institute is dedicated to research and education on exertional heat stroke. Its namesake is Stringer, a former Minnesota Vikings football player who died of heat stroke in 2001.

Dr. Casa has been involved in the treatment of nearly 300 cases of heat stroke. He said with proper treatment, survival is 100 percent.

"If you can get someone's body temperature under 104 degrees Fahrenheit within 30 minutes of the collapse from exertional heat stroke, survival has been 100 percent," Dr. Casa said.

"If you have the right policies and procedures in place, survival has been guaranteed," he continued.

At a Tuesday news conference, University of Maryland Athletic Director Damon Evans admitted team training and medical personnel did not take McNair's body temperature and did not submerse him in cold water, the best practice and first defense in preventing death from heat stroke.

The university did not answer FOX 5's questions about why the best practices surrounding identifying and treating heat stroke were not followed in McNair's case. A report on the external review that the university is paying for is expected to be released in mid-September.