Official: Phoenix high school football player dies of blunt force head trauma
Oct 30, 2017, 1:44 PM | Updated: Oct 31, 2017, 11:13 am
(Twitter Photo/@timothycknight4)
PHOENIX — Authorities have determined that a Phoenix high school football player died of blunt force trauma to the head, according to the Office of the Medical Examiner.
Moon Valley High School junior Carlos Sanchez, 16, died on Oct. 21, one day after he collapsed during a game, the school confirmed.
Sanchez was playing against Glendale Cactus when he made a block that drove his head into the ground.
“Carlos was all right. (He) popped back up and was ready for the next play,” Sanchez’s teammate, Malik Clark, told 12 News. “I turned my back for about five seconds. He collapsed. I took my helmet off and rushed to him to see if he was OK.”
Sanchez was immediately taken to the hospital.
The medical examiner’s office said the cause of Sanchez’s death was an accident but would not release any other details until a report was completed.
The school had a team of social workers on campus to help students deal with the teen’s death.
“Our school community is saddened by the news of [Sanchez]’s passing,” Kim Mesquita, the administrator of community relations for the Glendale Union High School District, said in a statement.
“We extend our deepest condolences to [Sanchez]’s family and friends during this difficult time.”
Moon Valley head coach Seth Millican said Sanchez had a huge heart and epitomized what it meant to be a good person.
“Not because of his death, but because of how he lived, has made each and every person on our team a better person,” Millican said during a press conference.
“The example he set – by always putting others first, always working his hardest and always having a smile on his face – will live on. My team is full of young men who will go out into the world and treat people in a better way because of [Sanchez]’s influence.”
A GoFundMe page has also been set up to help Sanchez’s family.
KTAR News’ Martha Maurer and Kathy Cline contributed to this report.