A Preventable Tragedy
Mark Kulbis, once the strength and conditioning coach at Bucknell University, now faces felony aggravated hazing charges after an 18‑year‑old freshman football player died following a team workout in July.
Calvin "CJ" Dickey Jr. collapsed during a conditioning session on July 10, 2024, and was pronounced dead two days later. Investigators say Kulbis ordered the squad to perform 100 up‑downs and body‑plank drills despite cautions from other coaches that the routine was unsafe.
The medical examiner’s autopsy linked Dickey’s death to a lethal combination of the strenuous exercises, his inherited sickle‑cell trait, his body mass and a resulting bout of exertional rhabdomyolysis. The report concluded that the circumstances were entirely foreseeable.
Kulbis surrendered to authorities and was arraigned with bail set at $10,000; a preliminary hearing is slated for July 28. The attorney general has called the incident intentional hazing that could have been avoided.
Dickey’s family has already filed a civil suit against Bucknell University alleging negligence and wrongful death. Kulbis’s attorney, however, maintains that the training program was appropriate and that additional facts will exonerate his client.