Columbus Paper Reports That Former Cowboy Ron Springs Is In a Coma

It was the feel-good story of the year: In late February, Everson Walls donated a kidney to his former Dallas Cowboys teammate Ron Springs. The two became, as the Associated Press reported in March, "the first former U.S. professional athletes to undergo an organ transplant." Springs said Walls did it out of "brotherly love," and both men recently served as honorary captains for their old team, taking the coin toss midfield at Texas Stadium before the Cowboys' September 9 season opener against the New York Giants.

But the story has taken a turn for the worst, according to The Columbus Dispatch today. The paper reports that Springs, who suffers from Type 2 diabetes, "was in a coma in a Dallas hospital last night because of complications from a Saturday surgery." This comes from "a family friend," reports the paper, which says that the 50-year-old Springs "had a cyst removed from one his arms" Saturday. Also: "Shawn Springs, Ron's son and a former OSU All-America cornerback and current NFL player, reportedly was at his father's side." --Robert Wilonsky