Tennessee State's Christion Abercrombie Still In Critical Condition

Tennessee State University (TSU) linebacker Christion Abercrombie remains in critical condition following emergency surgery at the Vanderbilt University Medical Center.

Abercrombie complained of a headache before collapsing on the sidelines Saturday during the first half of Tennessee's game against Vanderbilt.

TSU provided an update on the Atlanta native with quotes from his mother Staci as well as TSU coach Rod Reed.

The exact injury is not known at this point, however, Reed observed Sunday that it occurred during a regular football play when he was taking on a block, with no foul play involved.

"It was just a football play," Reed said on his coaches radio show on WNSR. "He was taking on a block and it wasn't anything malicious or dirty or anything like that. Just an unfortunate situation."

When the injury initially happened during the second quarter, however, Reed was unsure of what happened.

"It was right before the half,” Reed said after the game, as quoted on Tennessean. “He came to the sideline and just kind of collapsed there.”

“At the end of the day, I’m a football coach coaching a team and coaching a game, but football’s what we do, not who we are,” Vanderbilt coach Derek Mason added after the game. “I know what it is to be a coach. I know what it is to have a player who’s injured. At the end of the day, when serious injuries happen, football becomes secondary.”

Abercrombie is in his first year at TSU after transferring from Illinois. He boasts a team-high 1.5 sacks and is tied on second with 18 tackles through three games in 2018, according to Bleacher Report.