An Alabama high school football player has died after suffering a brain injury in a Friday night game between John T. Morgan Academy and Southern Academy played in Selma.
Junior quarterback Caden Tellier, 16, was injured on a tackle during the third quarter. He was flown to UAB Hospital in Birmingham, where he died Saturday.
Full details of what happened have not yet been reported, but Alabama Association of Independent Schools Executive Director Michael McLendon He told CNN that reports indicated Tellier likely suffered a ruptured blood vessel in his brain when he made contact with the field on a routine tackle.
“Everyone who knows Caden has known kindness, generosity and love, and true to his nature, he is giving of himself once again,” the Tellier family said in a statement. Via ABC News“Many lives were touched by his way of living and now many lives will be saved through his death.”
McLendon added Morgan Academy has canceled all classes and activities this week, “to give its community time to come together, reflect and support each other during this heartbreaking time.” That will include Friday’s scheduled game at Wilcox Academy.
A GoFundMe page has been set up to cover Tellier’s funeral expenses and has raised more than $75,000 of its $100,000 goal. According to NBC NewsMorgan Academy Principal Dr. Bryan Oliver confirmed that Tellier was an organ donor.