Football player with epilepsy fights for college career

WARNER ROBINS, Ga. - A Warner Robins teen said he is finding it tough to play college football despite some serious talent.

CJ Harris has had some SEC schools interested after his high school made it to the state championship game last season, but CJ has epilepsy and takes medical marijuana to control his seizures.

CJ said one school pulled its offer because of his medical condition.

CJ Harris was out Friday working out in the Georgia heat with dad Curtis.

He's wearing Auburn Tiger socks and a War Eagle bracelet. Auburn is still his favorite school, but he won't play football there like he hoped.

CJ said Auburn pulled a preferred walk-on spot because of his epilepsy and because the school feared he would fail NCAA drug tests because he uses medical marijuana to control his seizures.

"I was devastated. But I was mostly angry because I know the work that I put in so I could go there," said Harris.

CJ's doctor said it's nonsense. He said he can play with epilepsy and pass a drug test.

"Basically, the THC content of the product that he was taking is not enough to be of any concern," said Dr. Charlie Dean.

CJ will go to prep school this fall and play football. His dream is still to play for an SEC school. He said he worked out recently at both Alabama and Tennessee.

His dad said medical marijuana, only legal in Georgia for two years, completely controls CJ's seizures and has improved his life.

"When he started taking the oil, he brightened up.  I noticed it right away.  He was more alert and his grades started coming back up and I was like, OK,” said CJ’s dad, Curtis Harris.

CJ said regular drugs didn't work and made him sicker. His doctor agrees. But CJ said medical marijuana is new and unknown to so many people still from his friends to his prospective college coaches.

Auburn Coach Gus Malzahn responded briefly to a reporter's question about CJ this week.

CJ said he was also excited to go to Auburn because they have a great veterinary medicine school and that's the other half of his dream. He said he could quit football. That would be easy today. But he said he feels he owes something to himself and other kids with epilepsy to keep going. To perhaps open a door for someone else someday.