MURFREESBORO, Tenn. (WTVF) — As players past and present made their way onto the Oakland High School football field, absent was number twelve. Jeremiah Collins played football for the school, but Sunday afternoon his teammates gathered to mourn his loss.
Community members gathered in a circle on the field and took turns speaking about Collins.
"Jeremiah, to a man, was one of the hardest working kids in his class," said Aaron Foster, member of the football coaching staff at Austin Peay State University. "All he wanted to do was make everybody out here proud."
Metro Police say the freshman player at Austin Peay State University was driving Friday night on Briley Parkway West when his car ran off the road and rolled several times.
Collins was taken to the hospital where he died.
The news shocked his family.
"And I heard Jeremiah saying ‘pops be strong’. I can hear him now saying ‘pops be strong for the family’ but now he’s saying ‘pops be strong for extended family too’," said Collins' father, Melvin Collins.
Austin Peay State University Head Football Coach Scotty Walden remembered seeing Collins play for the first time.
"They talked about the smile and his work ethic and who he was as a person and that’s when I knew I want to sign this kid at Austin Pea," he said.
As coaches and teammates cope with his loss, they say his spirit will live on - both on and off the field. "We will play this season for Jeremiah Collins," said Walden.
A visitation for Collins will be held from two until six this Wednesday at the Woodfin Funeral Chapel in Murfreesboro. The funeral will take place immediately after.
