"Hard to watch this": Fans heartbroken watching cancer survivor Greg Brooks Jr. struggle to speak about his shattered NFL dreams

Greg Brooks Jr. was once a spirited teenager with dreams of becoming a professional football star. Unfortunately, fate had other plans for the former safety. Brooks began his collegiate career with the Arkansas Razorbacks, and in 2023, he entered the transfer portal to play for Brian Kelly and the LSU Tigers.

Before he could make a name for himself with LSU, Greg Brooks Jr. was diagnosed with a brain tumor. His condition worsened after surgery, and he is now confined to a wheelchair while facing other neurological struggles. Last week, Brooks and his dad appeared on 'The Pivot' podcast

On Saturday, MLFootball shared a clip from Brooks' interview. Host Ryan Clark broke down in tears, seeing the promising football star's condition. Greg Brooks Jr. then opened up about how he misses being on the field and playing the game.

"Sometimes I miss it, like damn," Brooks said. "I looked at the screen and be like, that's supposed to be me. But I'm just happy to be here."

Fans were heartbroken in the comments after seeing the once athletic LSU Tigers captain struggle to communicate normally.

"Hard to watch this," one fan commented.

"Life isn't fair man," another fan said.

"I wish the best to this young man," this fan said.

"Saddest story I've seen in a while everytime I see it I get chills may God be with me," another fan wrote.

"God kept him here so he can tell his story and journey," this fan commented.

Last August, Greg Brooks Jr. and his family filed a lawsuit against LSU and Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center for misdiagnosing his medical condition. The former safety also accused the coaching staff of making him continue practicing despite showing symptoms of a brain tumor.

In February, Brooks' dad told 'Good Morning America' that neither Brian Kelly nor anyone from the team reached out to check up on his son after the surgery. The LSU head coach responded by saying that it was 'factually incorrect' to mention he was not by his side through the ordeal.

"It is factually incorrect to state that I was not there by Greg's side through this ordeal on multiple occasions. I had somebody from my staff that was there virtually every single day," Kelly said.

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Greg Brooks Jr.'s dad refutes Brian Kelly's claims of assisting his son

During his discussion with Ryan Clark, Brooks Sr. called out Brian Kelly for his comments about supporting Greg Brooks Jr. He stood by his claims, stating that everything the LSU head coach said was 'a lie.'

"Look at the phone records. This man never called us," Brooks Sr said. "As a head coach, you name this kid a team captain, hell we don't care what he was...never called us. Why I gotta prove this, because I'm telling you, his mom don't know what he sound like."

Greg Brooks Jr. played five seasons of college football before his condition worsened. He recorded 186 tackles, two fumble recoveries, and one forced fumble.