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Clemson defensive end Justin Foster announced his retirement from football after missing the entire 2020 season battling symptoms of COVID-19.

Foster was projected to start for Clemson last season after finishing second on the team with 10.5 tackles for loss in 2019. However, Foster tested positive for the virus in August 2020, a battle from which he has not yet fully recovered.



“With sadness but no regret, I have decided it is in my best interest to call it a career and hang up football,” Foster posted to Twitter on Wednesday.

pic.twitter.com/qngWN9VZEm

— Justin Foster (@Fosterkiddddd) February 24, 2021

“I was born with asthma and allergies that, when active, affect my ability to breathe normally,” Foster wrote. “The combination of these conditions, along with contracting COVID, made for a severe difficulty to perform physically. While my situation has improved, I am not in a position now, or do I see that position soon, to step back on the field.”

Foster, who graduated last year, chose Clemson over Alabama, Florida and Georgia, among others, in the class of 2017.

He finishes with seven career sacks.

–Field Level Media (@FieldLevelMedia)