Clemson linebacker Bryton Constantin retires from football

After a series of injuries, Bryton Constantin is moving his love for the game from the field to the sidelines.

Bryton Constantin, a redshirt freshman inside linebacker at Clemson University, announced that he will be stepping away from the game following a history of battles with ACL injuries.

On Twitter, Constantin posted his goodbye, while also saying that he will continue to be enrolled at Clemson and serve the team in other ways moving forward.

Before Clemson, Constantin was a highly touted Louisiana native, ranked as the seventh-best player within the state and 94th overall from Rivals.com. After committing, Constantin redshirted his freshman season to recover from an ACL injury from playing basketball in high school.

Later that year, however, Constantin tore his ACL again in February. With a number of one of the most devastating injuries, Constantin stated that he had begun to lose his love for playing the game, inspiring the difficult decision to walk away and plan for life after football.

"It also made me think of my future health a lot more and look out for myself in 10+ years."

Bryton Constantin was envisioned to be the next big thing at Clemson.

Filling the shoes of Isaiah Simmons, Constantin looked to become a star linebacker with the Tigers. He was originally scouted for his ability to play multiple positions, athleticism and the clear potential to grow over time.

Few can understand how devastating an ACL injury can be, though. Just one has derailed many players’ careers before, and it is difficult to imagine the mental and physical pain of three of them.

Constantin is making a prudent decision to keep his post-playing career in mind and will continue to impact the program to be sure.