Troy defensive tackle Luis Medina could not control his emotions after a loss to James Madison during the Sun Belt Championship on Friday. He stole a phone from a fan on his way back into the locker room.
It was allegedly returned to the fan in a broken state without the Pokemon card in the back.
This unfortunate incident will be the lasting image of Medina’s college football career for most casual fans of the sport. I am sure it is not how he wants to be remembered after six years with the same program.
Troy lost to James Madison.
The No. 25-ranked Dukes hosted the four-loss Trojans in Harrisonburg, Virginia on Friday night with a conference championship on the line. Troy held tough with James Madison through the first three quarters but the home team ultimately sealed the deal with 14 points in the fourth quarter.
It was this scoop-and-score that put the game away:
SAHIR WITH THE SACK, SPIN WITH THE SCOOP AND SCORE!
— JMU Football (@JMUFootball) December 6, 2025
DUKES LEAD 31-14!! pic.twitter.com/t4vy60iBnH
Not only did the Dukes win the Sun Belt at 12-1, they might’ve punched a ticket to the College Football Playoff. They at very least kept their hope alive for 36 more hours.
On the flip side of victory is defeat. The Trojans will make a bowl game at 8-5 but their opportunity to play the spoiler and win the conference was squandered.
Luis Medina stole a fan’s phone.
Sixth-year senior defensive lineman Luis Medina joined the Troy football program in 2020. He recorded 136 tackles and seven sacks, and forced two fumbles during his lengthy career.
It is refreshing to see a player stay with the same school for this many years in an era of the sport where players often choose to transfer more than once. It is a testament to Medina’s character and what his coaches think of him as both an athlete and as a person. He was selected as a captain for this season.
Unfortunately, Medina could not control his emotions after the loss to James Madison.
A video with more than two million views on TikTok shows him snatch the phone from a Dukes fan as he walked back into the locker room. The phone was later returned in poor condition, which allegedly was not the case before it was stolen.
Here is the full video with the audio:
According to Jacob Erdman, a student at the university who filmed the video, it was his roommate’s phone that was stolen. He called Medina a “sore a– loser.”
Erdman’s roommate did eventually regain possession of his phone but, as you can see in the video, it was smashed. And a Pokemon card that was in the back of the phone (presumably inside the case) was gone.
Neither Luis Medina nor Troy University has addressed the incident as of this writing. Any “reports” of his arrest are false.