Nebraska linebacker Sean Fisher is giving up the pigskin for a physician's white coat.

The college football player has announced that he will forgo petitioning the NCAA for a sixth season with the Cornhuskers in order to enroll in medical school.

Fisher had the opportunity to play for a sixth season after an injury took him out of commission for the 2010 season. The linebacker had suffered a broken leg that included torn tendons. Instead, he will enter medical school in the fall, Omaha.com reported.

“The opportunity to be part of this football program the past five years has been a great experience and one that is difficult to walk away from, but I made the determination it was time to move on,” Fisher said in a statement released by the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

“I am planning to enroll in medical school in the fall and am putting all my energy toward preparing for that," he said.

“I appreciate Coach (Bo) Pelini and the coaching staff leaving the door open for me to consider returning to football and giving me the time to finalize my decision.”

Fisher maintained a 4.0 grade-point average as a business administration/pre-medicine major. He was named a second-team Academic All-American in 2011 and 2012.

The 6-foot-6, 230 pound linebacker started five of 14 games this past season, and his 48 tackles ranked ninth on the team, according to the Associated Press.

Football