UConn’s Thomas won’t return to football after stroke

STORRS, Conn. (AP) — UConn coach Randy Edsall says linebacker Eli Thomas won’t return to football after suffering a stroke last season.

The senior had been working on his rehabilitation since having a stroke last October before a weightlifting session. He had returned to the team and been named a captain in the spring, with the hopes of eventually resuming his football career.

Edsall announced Tuesday that Thomas has not been cleared by doctors to play again and has accepted that decision.

Edsall says Thomas will remain a part of the team in some capacity. He says Thomas is not in preseason camp, but rather at home in Elmira, New York, awaiting the birth of his first child.