Virginia Rising Third Year OL Martin Weisz Retiring From Football

By: Chris Horne |

University of Virginia rising third year Martin Weisz announced via Instagram on Friday (July 3) that he is retiring from football due to medical reasons. He will remain enrolled at UVA and will assist the football program in an analytics role.

“As some of you know, I have been dealing with lower back issues for over a year and a half now,” Weisz wrote on Instagram. The full post is below. “And after countless weeks and months of rehab and treatment, as well as different procedures to attempt and fix my problems, it is in my best interest to not continue playing football anymore. Nobody wants their athletic career to end this way, but after speaking about it with my coaches, athletic training staff, and doctors, we have concluded that this is the best decision moving forward.”

“Football has taught me many valuable lessons throughout my years of playing,” Weisz continued. “I have learned about teamwork, communication, leadership, accountability, resilience, grit, etc. I have become incredibly close with my teammates and became familiar with them in ways I could never even fathom. I still love the game, and I will forever. To all my coaches, I want to say thank you for all of your prodigious guidance and teaching. And to my brothers at UVA, I’ll still be around, I will be working as a student assistant with data analytics.

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When I first put on my helmet and shoulder pads in the 7th grade, I knew immediately that the game of football was for me. And just like everything in life, nothing worth having ever comes easy. However, I made a choice that football is something that I will pursue, so I began on my journey. From initially not being able to get in a stance, I knew that my new passion for football was going to take lots of time and effort. Throughout the years I have been blessed with an amazing support system of coaches, teammates, family, and friends; all who have been with me every step of the way throughout this process. From middle school to high school and now college football, my love for the game has never stopped. But unfortunately, due to health reasons I am announcing that I will be medically retiring from the game of football. As some of you know, I have been dealing with lower back issues for over a year and a half now. And after countless weeks and months of rehab and treatment, as well as different procedures to attempt and fix my problems, it is in my best interest to not continue playing football anymore. Nobody wants their athletic career to end this way, but after speaking about it with my coaches, athletic training staff, and doctors, we have concluded that this is the best decision moving forward. Football has taught me many valuable lessons throughout my years of playing. I have learned about teamwork, communication, leadership, accountability, resilience, grit, etc. I have become incredibly close with my teammates and became familiar with them in ways I could never even fathom. I still love the game, and I will forever. To all my coaches, I want to say thank you for all of your prodigious guidance and teaching. And to my brothers at UVA, I’ll still be around, I will be working as a student assistant with data analytics. It’s going to take a lot more than a messed up back to keep me away from our beloved Mccue Center. THANK YOU FOOTBALL! Much love✊🏻 #MartinsBack

A post shared by Martin Weisz (@martiniwiz) on

Weisz signed with UVA in the class of 2018. A graduate of The Benjamin School (Palm Beach Gardens, FL), he chose the Hoos over Kentucky and several Ivy League opportunities. The 6’6”, 310-pound offensive guard had three years of eligibility remaining.

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  1. A prudent decision, Mr.Weisz. No doubt a difficult and painful decision,especially at your age, but a decision I think you will be increasingly glad you made as the years go by and you get older and older. To be physically functional (i.e., capably self-reliant and therefore INDEPENDENT and not battling pain over the long term – day after day after day) for the rest of your life is critical and will allow you to do many things that you will enjoy, quite possibly things that you cannot imagine are ahead in future years. Football can be thrilling, but the basics are more important. Good luck to you and thanks for your hard work and contributions.

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