The ex-Green Beret who led an outdoor workout that left an Arizona State University hockey player in a coma said he was never asked to sign a contract, an apparent violation of school policies.
Tim Ziesel was allowed to lead a planned three-day workout based on a handshake agreement with the head hockey coach and other staff members, his attorney told The Arizona Republic.
"Tim didn't fill out any forms," Phoenix lawyer Buddy Rake said. "He met coaching staff and shook hands. He spoke to the head coach."
Ziesel wrapped up his first workout Aug. 20. Defenseman Matthew Mayich collapsed in the final minutes. The Canadian native was in the Phoenix area "five days max" when his family's lawyer said the 21-year-old suffered exertional heatstroke. It
was the first day of class and the first day of practice.
Arizona State mandates that "any outside consultant" complete and submit a request form before interacting directly with one or more student-athletes, according to an Arizona Republic review of Athletic Department guidelines.
The form, which is required annually of any volunteer or paid consultant, is supposed to give administrators "sufficient time for a comprehensive review" before any services for Sun Devil Athletics or its sports programs.
The consulting contract isn't the only potential policy violation connected to Mayich's collapse. A Sept. 5 investigation by The Republic found the school didn't follow its own policies designed to protect students from exertional heat illness.
Athletes are supposed to be exposed to heat gradually over seven to 14 days by steadily increasing the intensity and duration of activity in the sun, according to guidelines. And the first choice for treating heat illness "is with immediate cold water immersion." The policy calls for "a cold tub half-filled with water" and three to four coolers of ice ready for immediate use.
But Mayich was not rushed to a cooling station or dunked in an ice bath; he was instead left on the ground for several minutes while he was treated, Mayich family lawyer Robert Carey said.
Carey said he was not familiar with the consultant contract, but he would not be surprised if policies were short-cutted or ignored.
"They did not follow a lot of things," he said in a Sept. 14 interview. "It is really unfortunate, because any one of these things could have saved Matthew's life."
An ASU spokesperson declined comment on the outside contract guidelines.
"I cannot answer your question about how Tim Ziesel’s engagement began," ASU spokesperson Jay Thorne said in a Sept. 14 email.
The ASU Police Department began investigating the circumstances of Mayich's collapse after getting the 911 call. Administrators also have promised a separate review of everything surrounding the workout.
While ASU officials have acknowledged having heat illness and contract policies in place, they have not said if they were followed.
Head hockey coach Greg Powers and a team trainer have not responded to requests for comment.
ASU Athletic Director Graham Rossini has discussed — and downplayed — the university's investigation during regular appearances on the Burns and Gambo Show on Arizona Sports 98.7 FM. He said officials were trying to understand why a military veteran was brought in for training.
"On our outside consultants, there is a process," he said Sept. 3. "There's policies and guidelines for how that works. And that's part of the looking that we're doing right now, to make sure that process was followed."
Mayich family calls for outside police investigation
Mayich's family has no faith the university will lead an impartial investigation, Carey said. He has called for ASU to hand over the case to the Phoenix Police Department, the Arizona Attorney General's Office or state police.
"ASUPD is a department of the University. It is overseen by the same administration whose athletic department, coaches, staff, and outside instructor are the subjects of the inquiry," he said. in a Sept. 4 letter to the university.
"Even a flawless investigation by ASUPD would be met with the objection that the University investigated itself," Carey said in the letter, which was copied to Phoenix Police Chief Matthew Giordano, Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes and Department of Public Safety Director Col. Jeffrey Glover.
Carey asked ASU to respond by Sept. 11. He said he was still waiting and had not heard anything from any law enforcement agency.
Carey has accused ASU of mishandling the investigation. Coaches and team staff have continued overseeing players, who fear retaliation such as the loss of scholarships or positions if they speak out, he said.
No effort was made to sequester the hockey players from the coaching staff overseeing the workout, he said.
Mayich, a sophomore from Stoney Creek, Ontario, was in his first year at ASU. He was part of a 2026 transfer portal class that ranked first in the country. He appeared in 34 games, tallying seven goals and eight assists, in his freshman season at Clarkson University in Potsdam, New York.
He was drafted by the St. Louis Blues of the National Hockey League in 2023. Drafted players retain their college status while NHL teams hold their exclusive signing rights.
Tempe Fire Medical Rescue crews responded at 8:30 a.m. to ASU's Joe Selleh Track for calls of a heat-related illness. Mayich was rushed to a hospital and later transferred to Barrow Neurological Institute in Phoenix, where he has remained in a coma.
His family has maintained a daily prayer vigil that has drawn hundreds of people from all over the world.
Mayich's condition has not changed in weeks, and he has "zero percent chance of recovery," Carey said.
A handshake agreement cemented training session, lawyer says
Ziesel said he volunteered to lead the workout at the request of the head hockey coach.
Powers did not involve Ziesel in any vetting process, his lawyer said. The ex-Green Beret was not asked to sign anything and had "nothing to do" with agreeing to ASU's rules or procedures, Rake said.
The university's two-page policy titled "outside consultants" appears directed at coaches and staff as much as anyone brought in from outside the university.
Coaches are required to ensure outside consultants follow National Collegiate Athletic Association and ASU regulations along with federal, state and local health and safety guidelines.
The guidelines cover "requirements relating to the engagement of third parties or other entities outside the institution." Those include coaching limitations, time management, use of student-athlete names and images, data collection and safety certifications.
Outside consultants are required to carry and maintain first aid, cardiopulmonary resuscitation and automatic external defibrillator certifications, according to the policy. And it prohibits them from working without going through the Sun Devil Athletics approval process.
"Outside consultants are not permitted to work with student-athletes, coaches, or staff, and they may not provide services to SDA, until all procedural steps are followed, the process is completed, and approval documentation is received," the policy states.
'They were trying to send a message that we're really tough'
Ziesel said that he is willing to meet with Mayich's parents. He believes officials should "investigate everything and they should tell the parents everything," Rake said.
The Republic was the first to identify and interview Ziesel. He said he left the workout minutes before Mayich collapsed.
Ziesel ran the players through 45-50 minutes of sprints, push-ups and flutter kicks. He also had them lift and carry teammates, Rake said. Later exercises included running with medicine balls, but Ziesel was gone before the players finished, he said.
Rake denied the workout was extreme and said it resembled a military exercise only in cadence and team-building.
"This was not a Green Beret or SEAL workout. Far from it," Rake said in an Aug 27 interview. "The head coach, assistant coaches and medical were always present."
Ziesel has led similar exercises for years at Arizona Christian University.
Social posts from the men's basketball team in 2022 thanked Ziesel for lessons on being "men of character, meekness, and integrity."
Conditions were approaching the high range on the ASU's heat-stress index of temperature and humidity when the hockey players started working out about 7 a.m. — and had surpassed it by 8 a.m. Multiple sites that collect weather data show the temperature was between 87 and 89 degrees with 49% humidity.
"Only fit and heat acclimatized athletes can participate," in those conditions, according to the ASU heat policy.
Carey said interviews he's conducted with hockey players and others have convinced him coaches wanted to see how much players could endure in the heat. And they wanted to set the tone for the season, he said.
"They were trying to send a message that we're really tough," Carey said. "And we're going to start that on Day One."
Robert Anglen is an investigative reporter for The Republic. Reach him at robert.anglen@arizonarepublic.com. Follow him on X @robertanglen.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: No contract or vetting before ASU hockey workout, trainer says | Exclusive
