ASU Review Raises Questions After Matthew Mayich’s Collapse

Arizona State University has released its initial review of the August 20 hockey team workout that ended with Matthew Mayich collapsing and being rushed to the hospital. The report provides the university’s most detailed account of the workout to date, including how the session came together, who attended, how ASU says players accessed water, and how staff responded after Mayich went down.

Inside The Rink reviewed ASU’s initial report along with the supporting documents released by the university, including its timeline of events, outside-consultant policy, exertional heat-illness guidelines and information outlining the roles of those involved. Taken together, the documents provide new details about August 20 while leaving several key questions unresolved.

ASU says investigators interviewed 20 individuals through either the university’s administrative review or the separate police investigation. The report does not identify those individuals or specify how many were players, coaches, staff members or others connected to the August 20 workout. ASU says it invited all student-athletes to participate but did not require them to do so. The university also states that it will not tolerate retaliation against anyone who provides information or raises concerns.

Mayich remains hospitalized and unresponsive more than a month after the workout. With ASU’s account now public, the focus shifts toward what the university’s own documents reveal about the planning, oversight and emergency response surrounding that morning. The ASU Police Department continues a separate investigation and will send its completed report to the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office for independent review.

ASU Provides Its Account

ASU says Timothy Ziesel directed players through exercises that included push-ups, planks, flutter kicks, bear crawls, squats, sprints and buddy carries. All three hockey coaches attended along with the team’s assigned athletic trainer. Players later ran while carrying 10-pound medicine balls, and ASU says Mayich struggled during that final exercise before stumbling and falling.

The university also addressed the disputed issue of water access. ASU says head coach Greg Powers directed Ziesel to give players a water break approximately 20 minutes into the session. Witnesses also told ASU that they saw players drinking at other times during the workout.

Questions Surround the Workout’s Approval

ASU’s timeline says Powers decided in early August to bring Ziesel back after he had previously spoken to the hockey team about leadership and teamwork. Hockey staff submitted a request on August 12 to use him as an outside consultant. The request did not include a written plan for the physical activities. ASU also says hockey supporter James Fairorth arranged Ziesel’s participation and that Ziesel did not have a contract with the university.

ASU’s outside-consultant policy requires consultants to complete an approval process before providing services to student-athletes, coaches or staff. The report establishes that hockey staff submitted a request for Ziesel, but it does not clearly state whether ASU granted final approval. That distinction matters because requesting approval and receiving it are not the same thing.

The university does answer another part of the oversight question. Hockey staff did not submit the physical training activities to ASU’s strength and conditioning coaches for review beforehand. That finding gives additional context to the Mayich family’s earlier call for an independent investigation because ASU’s own review now confirms that its strength and conditioning staff did not evaluate the workout before players participated.

Heat Acclimatization and Monitoring

ASU’s heat-illness policy provides another way to examine the preparation for August 20. The university says it developed those guidelines in consultation with the Mayo Clinic and based them on recommendations from the National Athletic Trainers’ Association.

Mayich arrived in Tempe from Canada on August 12 and underwent a pre-participation physical examination. The team physician and athletic trainer medically cleared him for athletic participation the following day. ASU says all student-athletes who participated in the August 20 workout had received medical clearance.

Before the team-building event, Mayich participated in voluntary workouts on August 14, 17 and 18. ASU says only about 15 minutes of each session took place outdoors. The university’s heat policy recommends that athletes gradually acclimatize to hot conditions over seven to 14 days, with the duration and intensity of heat exposure increasing over time. In simpler terms, acclimatization allows an athlete’s body to adjust to exercising in the heat.

Mayich had been in Arizona for eight days by August 20. The report does not determine whether his previous outdoor exposure met those guidelines. It also does not address whether staff specifically evaluated his heat acclimatization before the longer outdoor session.

ASU estimates that temperatures during the workout ranged from approximately 86 to 89 degrees. The university also calculated Wet Bulb Globe Temperature, or WBGT, which considers factors such as temperature, humidity, wind and sunlight to better estimate the heat stress an athlete experiences. ASU reconstructed those figures after the workout using publicly available readings from a nearby weather sensor and an OSHA calculator.

That timing creates another question because ASU’s heat policy recommends regularly measuring environmental conditions during athletic activities. The initial report does not say whether staff monitored WBGT or comparable conditions at Sun Angel Stadium that morning. ASU can now estimate the conditions players experienced, but its report does not establish what environmental information staff had available while the workout was underway.

Examining the Emergency Response

ASU’s account says the athletic trainer assessed Mayich after he fell and began cooling him with iced towels and water. When his condition deteriorated, the trainer called 911. Players helped move Mayich into the shade. The trainer continued cooling him with towels and water from a hose until emergency responders arrived.

The university’s heat-illness policy provides additional procedures for suspected heat illness. It calls for cold-water immersion tubs, ice towels and shade during training periods of increased heat or humidity. Its onsite guidelines are more specific, stating that a cold tub should be half-filled with water before an event so it can be used immediately if necessary, with additional ice kept nearby. The policy identifies immediate cold-water immersion as the first choice for cooling when heat illness is suspected.

ASU’s timeline specifically notes that the athletic trainer brought water and a cooler containing iced towels to the field, but it does not mention an immersion tub. The report also does not state whether anyone measured Mayich’s core temperature. ASU’s policy says the team physician should be contacted immediately once heat illness is suspected. The initial report does not state whether that occurred from the field.

ASU’s policy also says a cold-water immersion pool should be among the supplies available at all practice and competition locations. If core temperature cannot be assessed and cold-water immersion is indicated, the policy calls for cooling the athlete for 10 to 15 minutes before transport to a medical facility

Given the severity of Mayich’s condition, whether staff followed those portions of the emergency protocol remains an important question.

What Comes After ASU’s Initial Review?

ASU plans additional examination of its athletic procedures, including how it approves outdoor activities, oversees outside consultants, monitors student-athletes and prepares for emergencies. That process could result in recommendations and changes to university policies or practices.

The need for further review is significant. ASU’s own report establishes that Mayich underwent a pre-participation physical examination. He received medical clearance from the team physician and athletic trainer before participating. Yet the initial findings still do not explain how a medically cleared 21-year-old student-athlete went from participating in a team-building workout to collapsing on the field and remaining hospitalized and unresponsive more than a month later.

A follow-up review may provide additional answers, but ASU’s initial report does not resolve the central question of how this happened.

What Questions Still Need Answers?

Inside The Rink’s review of the documents released by ASU shows that the university has provided far more information about August 20. However, that information alone does not close the gaps that remain.

Who ultimately held responsibility for ensuring that the workout met ASU’s requirements before it began? When concerns arose that morning, who had the authority to stop or change the session? Were the safeguards designed to protect student-athletes effective in practice rather than simply present in written policy?

The university’s own response suggests that further examination will extend beyond this one workout. ASU plans to review how it approves outdoor activities, oversees outside consultants, monitors student-athletes and prepares for emergencies. The larger question is whether that process will produce meaningful answers about August 20 and identify changes needed to prevent another athlete from experiencing a similar outcome.

More than a month after Mayich arrived for what was supposed to be a team-building workout, he remains hospitalized and unresponsive. Behind the policies, timelines and investigative findings is a 21-year-old student-athlete whose life changed that morning, along with a family still waiting for answers.

That is why what remains unanswered matters. This goes beyond paperwork, approval forms or whether the correct boxes were checked before a workout. At the center of the review are safeguards designed to protect student-athletes when something goes wrong.

Were ASU’s heat and emergency protocols followed as written?

If they were, were those safeguards sufficient, and how did a team-building workout end with a 21-year-old student-athlete still hospitalized and unresponsive weeks later?

If they were not, where did the process break down, who was responsible for following those safeguards and what accountability will now follow?

ASU’s initial report cannot answer those questions on its own. The continuing review and separate police investigation will have to determine what happened in the areas the documents leave unresolved.

Arizona State University. (2026, September 21). Initial report on the review of August 20 events related to ASU hockey player Matthew Mayich.

Arizona State University, Sun Devil Athletics. (2026, September 21). Initial timeline of events based on information available as of September 21, 2026.

Arizona State University, Sun Devil Athletics. (n.d.). Exertional heat illness policy.

Arizona State University, Sun Devil Athletics. (n.d.). Outside consultants policy.