Tag: tragedy

Frank Clark overfilled with joy following Chiefs win in Super Bowl LVII

Frank Clark was overfilled with joy, delivering an emotional interview after the #Chiefs’ win over the #Eagles in Super Bowl LVII. | from @TheJohnDillon

In a season where he had been counted out and suspended, Kansas City Chiefs DE Frank Clark was overcome with emotion after the team’s Super Bowl win on Sunday night.

Speaking with Peter Schrager on the field just after the game, he made it clear that the wave of feelings he was experiencing wouldn’t be possible without his fellow Chiefs teammates and their belief in him.

“I’m just ecstatic, man,” Clark explained. “Just overfilled with joy, you know? I had a rough year, man. It’s been rough for me. My teammates, they never lost faith in me, man. I’m just thankful, just extremely humbled and thankful. I’m just thankful, I’ve got some of the best teammates in the world, bro. And just being able to come out here… a lot of adversity in the first half, to come out there in the second half and fix our mistakes and fix it, and we’re champs two times, man.”

Asked about how the win felt in the wake of losing family members in a 2018 housefire in Cleveland, Ohio, Clark was visibly emotional when talking about his late father, who he said was smiling on the team after the win.

“It’s a blessing, man,” Clark said, through tears. “I know my pops is smiling, man. I wish he could see it, but I know he’s smiling, man. I’ve been going through a lot the last few days, but it makes sense now, it makes sense bro.”

Clark was held at bay in Super Bowl LVII, as most defenders were on the slippery turf, but his spirit on the field was a key driver of the Chiefs’ defensive effort in the championship game. Given all of the adversity he has faced, both in 2022 and earlier in his career, it is safe to say that this win meant more to him than just a ring.

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Former University of Southwest golf coach mourns the death of his final recruit in van accident

“She had the greatest personality,” former coach Carl Miller said of Karisa Raines.

Carl Miller was awakened to his phone buzzing at 3 o’clock in the morning on Wednesday. It was a text message from a friend notifying him of a horrific car accident in Texas that killed six University of Southwest golfers, the coach and left two others injured.

“I just couldn’t believe it,” he said.

Miller’s mind immediately shifted to Hobbs, New Mexico, and for good reason. Now the assistant pro at The King & Bear golf course in St. Augustine, Florida, he coached the men’s and women’s team at USW — a private Christian school that competes at the NAIA level — from 2017 to 2019, calling it “a dream job to coach at the college level.”

Miller, 39, who caddied on the Korn Ferry Tour for pro Brad Fritsch in between jobs, had the day off and was in Palm Harbor, Florida, site of this week’s PGA Tour Valspar Championship visiting friends.

The USW team was commuting back to school from an event in Midland, Texas, that Miller said was a staple of its tournament schedule. The team’s van, which was carrying nine students from the men’s and women’s squad, was hit head-on when a pickup truck crossed the centerline of a two-lane road in Andrews County, about 30 miles east of the New Mexico state line.

NTSB Vice Chairman Bruce Landsberg said Thursday that the crash occurred at high speed and that the front left tire of the pickup truck, which was a spare, was blown out before the impact.

Miller went down the roster and did the mental calisthenics, figuring that three of his former recruits remained on the team. He called Justin Pasitney and breathed easier when the senior finance major from Alberta, Canada, answered. Pasitney had qualified for the match in Midland but had given his spot to one of his fellow teammates from Canada. (Freshman golfers Dayton Price and Hayden Underhill were both airlifted to a nearby hospital and initially reported to be in critical conditions with severe burns.)

“I spoke to Justin, who had just returned from visiting at the hospital and it’s very tough when you know it should’ve been you on the van,” Miller said.

Next, he phoned Jenna Sand, another Canadian golfer who he had recruited from Alberta. Sand, 20, noted on her team bio that she wants to become a teacher. Sand answered, too. It turns out she had left school during the pandemic and had not returned.

But before he could make a phone call to his final recruit, he heard the bad news that Karisa Raines, 21 of Fort Stockton, Texas, was among the casualties. Miller called her “Big Red,” for the color of her long curly locks. She wanted to become a forensic scientist, counted LPGA star Nelly Korda as her favorite athlete and her pre-round ritual was prayer and to listen to music.

“She had the greatest personality,” Miller said.

A GoFundMe page for funeral expenses for Raines was started Wednesday afternoon and already had raised nearly $20,000.

Miller asked that donations also be made to support the expenses of the other victims of this terrible tragedy. Any Given Tuesday, a podcast dedicated to college golf, has created a GoFundMe fundraiser for the victims of the accident involving the USW golf teams.

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College football world reacts to tragic passing of Utah running back Ty Jordan

Rest in Peace, Ty Jordan.

Utah Utes freshman running back Ty Jordan passed away, according to a statement released from the university on Saturday.

This is all so devastating. Jordan was just 19 years old — he was a kid. He also just had a fantastic season and was recently named the Pac-12’s Freshman Offensive Player of the Year. But, more than that, he was beloved by his teammates and coaches.

All the details of Jordan’s tragic passing have not yet been revealed, The university did confirm Jordan’s passing with a tweet on Saturday morning. Head coach Kyle Whittingham also released a statement on Jordan’s tragic passing, saying the team was devastated and heartbroken by the news.

 

Whittingham talked about the mark Jordan left on the program and how much they’ll miss him.

“Ty’s personality and smile were infectious and he made a huge impact on our program in the short time he was with us. He leaves an indelible mark on each of us and our thoughts and prayers go out to his family and friends. From the bottom of our hearts, all of us in the Utah Football Family want to say we love you Ty and may you rest in peace.” 

College football fans and players, including some of Jordan’s teammates, reacted to the tragic news.

Philadelphia copes with tragic shooting death of high school football star by his twin brother

The tragic death of Suhail Gillard at the hand of his brother, Fayaadh Gillard, has rocked a Philadelphia community that is struggling to come to grips with the full scope of the tragic death.

An unspeakable tragedy unfolded in Philadelphia on Sunday when one Mastery Charter High School football star was shot dead by a teammate who also happened to be his brother.

As the Philadelphia Inquirer reported, Fayaadh Gillard has been charged with murder, possession of an instrument of crime, unsworn falsification to authorities, and obstructing justice in connection with the shooting death of his twin brother, Suhail Gillard, in an apartment. Police documents show that the Gillard brothers were together in the apartment with relatives when the shooting happened, with their father allegedly teaching them how to handle a gun.

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Indeed, fellow members of the Mastery Charter football team intimidated that the shooting had to have been an accident, with the team and broader school community rallying around Fayaadh Gillard in support of him as he grieves the death of his twin and his own role in it.

“I know Fayaadh didn’t do it on purpose,” Trenton Williams, a Mastery Charter football captain, told the Inquirer. “I know it was an accident. That’s his twin. His twin would never do that. They had much love for each other. I just cried my eyes out.”

Fayaadh Gillard is currently out on bail, with the Inquirer citing a court source claiming that the murder charge against Fayaadh Gillard will likely be downgraded to third degree murder or third degree manslaughter, both of which allow for those charged to post bail.

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