An Alabama high school football player died Tuesday after collapsing during practice.
Semaj Wilkins, 14, a freshman at New Brockton High School, suffered a medical emergency, received CPR on the field and was later taken to the hospital.
Today.com reported: The incident reportedly happened around 4:30 p.m. while the team was warming up.
“This is a really big blow to this small community,” Coffee County Coroner Arnold Woodham told the outlet. “I’ve lived here my whole life and this is the first time I’ve ever seen or heard of anything like this happening here.”
The cause of Wilkins’ death was not immediately known.
“Semaj was a young man who brought joy and inspiration to his peers, teammates, coaches and faculty and staff. His passing will be deeply missed by all who knew him,” Coffee County Superintendent of Schools Kelly Cobb said in a statement Thursday.
Wilkins’ mother, Regina Johnson Adams He told WDHNShe told a spokesman for a Dothan, Alabama, television station that her son “loves sports.”
She said she was unaware that her son had any health issues before his death.
“At this point, we know that he was healthy … it’s probably something we missed,” Johnson Adams told WDHN. “There are underlying health conditions in our family, so we don’t know what’s going to happen.”
This latest tragedy comes just one week after a Virginia high school football player collapsed in a similar manner during practice and died on the field.
A vigil will be held Friday at New Brockton’s football field in Wilkins’ memory, the Associated Press reported.
