Coach: Football field was 'piece of heaven' for slain player
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Hundreds gathered in Kansas to remember a Washburn University football player who was killed in a shooting that also wounded a friend who had been drafted hours earlier by the New York Giants.
The Kansas City Star reports that coach Craig Schurig said at Tuesday's vigil for 23-year-old Dwane Simmons that the football field was his "piece of heaven." The coach compared Simmons, a junior from Lee's Summit, Missouri, to the candles carried by mourners, saying he "shined the light on everybody." The university plans to create a scholarship named for Simmons.
The shooting early Sunday outside an off-campus party also injured cornerback Corey Ballentine, whom the Giants drafted Saturday in the sixth round. The university says Ballentine is expected to make a full recovery. No one has been arrested.
-
Jayden Daniels moves up, Bo Nix goes 12th in Colin Cowherd's NFL mock draft
2024 NFL Draft Schedule: Date, time, how to watch, TV channel
2024 NFL Draft order: Every pick for all seven rounds
-
2024 NFL Draft prospect rankings: Top 100 led by Caleb Williams
2024 NFL Draft QB rankings: Caleb Williams leads top 10 prospects
2024 NFL playoff bracket: Schedule, picture, Super Bowl result
-
2024 NFL Draft WR rankings: Marvin Harrison Jr. leads stacked top 10 prospects
2024 NFL free agency tracker: Signings, updates, best players available
2024 NFL Draft RB rankings: No clear stars, but deep top 10 prospects
-
Jayden Daniels moves up, Bo Nix goes 12th in Colin Cowherd's NFL mock draft
2024 NFL Draft Schedule: Date, time, how to watch, TV channel
2024 NFL Draft order: Every pick for all seven rounds
-
2024 NFL Draft prospect rankings: Top 100 led by Caleb Williams
2024 NFL Draft QB rankings: Caleb Williams leads top 10 prospects
2024 NFL playoff bracket: Schedule, picture, Super Bowl result
-
2024 NFL Draft WR rankings: Marvin Harrison Jr. leads stacked top 10 prospects
2024 NFL free agency tracker: Signings, updates, best players available
2024 NFL Draft RB rankings: No clear stars, but deep top 10 prospects