On Monday, Stanford senior offensive guard Branson Bragg announced his retirement from football. On social media, he posted the following statement:
"I'm heartbroken to announce that I've decided to retire from football. This was the hardest decision I've ever had to make, but with long-term lingering and intense symptoms stemming from a severe concussion I sustained in training camp, along with other mental health factors, I'm confident that stepping away is the best decision for me. The past four years at Stanford have been everything that I could've hoped for, and I created countless lifelong bonds while living out my dream with the best teammates and support staff in the world. Huge shoutouts to the entire offensive line, Coach Shaw, Coach Heff, Coach Pritchard, Coach Carroll, Coach Perez, Dr Kelli Moran-Miller, Floyd Vito-Cruz, GregValenzisi, all of our athletic trainers, and so many more. I plan to graduate on time with a bachelors in Mathematical and Computational Science.
Go Card, now and forever!!
Branson Bragg"
Bragg was projected to start at guard for Stanford this season before hanging up his cleats for good. He was a key part of the offensive line rotation last year, starting nine games while getting snaps at both guard and tackle. He received various pre-season Pac-12 honors prior to the season and expected to be one of the better offensive linemen in the country. For Bragg, it’s good that he’s taking care of his mental health and overall well-being above everything else. He’s getting his degree from Stanford and has a bright future ahead of him outside of football. Sometimes stepping away is the right thing to do and it’s good that Bragg recognizes this.
As for Stanford, they’re going to have to turn to some younger guys to fill the void at guard. Levi Rogers got the start over Bragg last week and it’s possible Barrett Miller enters the mix as well to take that spot. Stanford is pretty thin at guard and will likely do a lot of shuffling the rest of the way. It’ll be interesting to see how that shakes out and how the offensive line does at replacing Bragg’s production up front.
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