# Former NFL Punter Patrick O'Neill Sues NCAA, Blaming Concussions for Parkinson's Disease > Patrick O'Neill, a former NFL punter turned orthopedic surgeon, sued the NCAA in Manhattan Supreme Court. - Published: 2026-11-14T22:14:20+00:00 - Section: Legal & Disputes - Author: News Desk - URL: https://newsforagent.com/news/2026-11-14/ncaa-sued-patrick-oneill-parkinsons - Source: [New York Post](https://nypost.com/2026/11/14/us-news/ex-nfl-punter-sues-ncaa-after-heartbreaking-parkinsons-diagnosis/) ## Key takeaways - Patrick O'Neill, 55, filed suit against the NCAA on November 2 in Manhattan Supreme Court, claiming repeated college concussions led to Parkinson's disease. - O'Neill played football on a scholarship at Syracuse University from 1990 to 1993 before punting in the NFL and becoming an orthopedic surgeon. - The complaint alleges the NCAA knew of links between repeated head injuries and Parkinson's disease as far back as the 1930s. - The NCAA and the U.S. Department of Defense committed over $105 million to concussion and brain injury research through the CARE Consortium and Grand Alliance formed in 2014. Patrick O'Neill, a former NFL punter turned orthopedic surgeon, sued the NCAA in Manhattan Supreme Court on November 2, claiming repeated concussions suffered as a college athlete led to Parkinson's disease. The [New York Post](https://nypost.com/2026/11/14/us-news/ex-nfl-punter-sues-ncaa-after-heartbreaking-parkinsons-diagnosis/) reported the filing on November 14. ## O'Neill's Claims Against the NCAA O'Neill, 55, was an Academic All-American and University Scholar at Syracuse University, where he played football on a scholarship from 1990 to 1993. The complaint states that he was urged to power through head injuries and was not told about their risks. "The NCAA failed to protect Patrick O'Neill's health and safety, because it failed to make the game of football as safe as possible, and because it failed to keep Patrick O'Neill informed so he could make reasonable decisions about whether to play college football and how to play it safely," the suit says. The complaint alleges the NCAA knew repeated head injuries were linked to Parkinson's disease as far back as the 1930s but did not take adequate steps to protect players. It also alleges the organization ignored doctor recommendations to ban players from contact sports after three moderate concussions. "Without a competent medical professionals properly versed in repetitive head trauma on the sidelines, Patrick O'Neill repeatedly sustained trauma to his head in games and/or practice in NCAA football," the complaint alleges. "Despite the trauma, Patrick O'Neill was never removed from the field for examination, rest, and treatment." After graduating, O'Neill was drafted in 1994 as an NFL punter and played for the New England Patriots, Chicago Bears, New York Jets and Jacksonville Jaguars. He was named the NFL All-rookie punter in his first pro season with the Patriots. He entered Johns Hopkins University Medical School in Baltimore in 1998 and later became chief of orthopedic surgery at Sarasota Memorial Hospital. He currently practices at Kennedy-White Orthopedic Center in Sarasota, Florida. "This brain disease has forced Patrick O'Neill to suffer great loss, including in his ability to practice as an orthopedic surgeon," the complaint claims. The NCAA, Syracuse University, O'Neill and his attorney did not return requests for comment. ## NCAA Concussion Research and Membership The [NCAA](https://akta.pro/company-profiles/0004xko/ncaa) is a private non-profit membership organization founded in 1906 that governs intercollegiate athletics in the U.S., according to akta.pro [company records](https://akta.pro/company-data). The same records show approximately 1,100 member schools and more than 500,000 student-athletes across three divisions. The NCAA and the U.S. Department of Defense formed the CARE Consortium and Grand Alliance in May 2014, committing over $105 million to concussion and brain injury research. The NCAA also partners with the National Center for Catastrophic Sport Injury Research at UNC to track mandatory reporting of catastrophic injuries and deaths among student-athletes, and with the Datalys Center to manage its Injury Surveillance Program. ## Earlier NCAA Legal and Policy Events On November 13, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton's office dropped a lawsuit accusing the NCAA of deceptive marketing of women's sports, [Yahoo](https://akta.pro/news-signals) reported. The suit, filed in December 2024, cited the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act and was not pursued; the NCAA did not respond. In June 2026, the NCAA Division I Cabinet unanimously approved a new age-based "5-for-5" eligibility model replacing the four-season-over-five-years rule, effective for the 2026-27 season, according to the same records. In 2025, a federal court upheld the College Sports Commission's classification of NIL deals through multimedia rightsholders and school sponsors as "associated entities" subject to stricter scrutiny under the House v. NCAA settlement, protecting revenue-sharing caps. ## What Comes Next in the O'Neill Case The suit was filed November 2 in Manhattan Supreme Court. No hearing date or NCAA response deadline was stated in the filing as reported. ## Companies in this story - [NCAA company profile](https://akta.pro/company-profiles/0004xko/ncaa) · website: https://www.ncaa.org --- News for Agent · https://newsforagent.com/llms.txt