Former Auburn offensive lineman Chaz Ramsey's lawyer filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Birmingham this afternoon against former Tigers offensive line coach Hugh Nall and athletics trainer Arnold Gamber.

Ramsey alleges that their aggressive rehab program following his back surgery led to a second, career-ending injury. Ramsey's lawyer, Steve Heninger, went on WJOX radio n Birmingham this afternoon to talk about the lawsuit. Have a listen here.

Here's the story:

AUBURN, Ala. — Former Auburn offensive lineman Chaz Ramsey is suing two former university employees, claiming their actions following a back injury he suffered in 2007 caused him pain and anguish and denied him “a very probable career in the NFL.”

Rasmey’s attorney, Steve Heninger, filed the lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Birmingham on Thursday, according to several reports. The suit, which does not state a specific a monetary figure, claims former Auburn offensive line coach Hugh Nall and athletics trainer Arnold Gamber disregarded specific orders from Ramsey’s doctor relating to the lineman’s rehabilitation schedule following back surgery.

“This is not just for Chaz,” Heninger said on WJOX radio in Birmingham. “We’ve got to make sure these student-athletes can’t be violating their own physicians’ orders when they’ve had surgery. ... We’re hoping Chaz’s case makes a difference for those kids, because it’s got to stop.”

Neither Nall nor Gamber could be reached for comment Thursday night.

Ramsey earned freshman All-SEC accolades in 2007 but injured his back lifting weights prior to the Chick-fil-A Bowl that December. Things worsened in the spring and he opted for surgery to repair two herniated discs, a procedure that was only supposed to keep him out for 90 days.

The problem began, Ramsey alleges, when Nall and Gamber aggressively pushed his rehabilitation schedule, intimidating the lineman into doing weight room exercises that were against his doctor’s orders, often using the phrase, “Man up.” Ramsey claims he re-injured his back in June because of the accelerated rehab program.

Heninger alleges Nall told Ramsey’s teammates not to associate with him in August, cleaning out the lineman’s locker and withholding his meal ticket.

“They did everything they could to intimidate him,” Heninger said.

Ramsey did not play last season and eventually had a second, more serious surgery in January of this year that ended his football career.

Auburn itself is not being sued. Heninger said the school has sovereign immunity, which prevents it from being sued in federal court.

“A lot of people will see this as a suit against Auburn, though by a different name. But it’s really not,” Heninger said. “It’s against individuals because they went beyond their state of authority.”

Neither Nall nor Gamber were retained by the new coaching staff following Tommy Tuberville’s resignation. They are the only two people currently named in the lawsuit, but Heninger said he will take a deposition of former Auburn coaches, including Tuberville, “to find out how high did the orders come down from.” Heninger, who expects the case to go to trial next summer, noted that he “has seen nothing yet to implicate anybody else.”

Heninger said Ramsey, who has slimmed down from 310 pounds to 245 now that his playing days are over, can run, jog and walk but can no longer play football.