Eighth-grader dies after injury during football practice in West Virginia
Cohen Craddock, 14, died Saturday after sustaining injuries during a football practice Friday in Madison, West Virginia. As the news spread in the area, there was an outpouring of support.
A West Virginia community is mourning the loss of a middle school student who died Saturday, a day after being injured during football practice.
Cohen Craddock, an eighth-grader at Madison Middle School in Madison, West Virginia, died Saturday after sustaining injuries during football practice Friday. Madison is about 30 miles outside of Charleston, the state capital.
Joseph Smith, executive director of the Boone County Ambulance Authority, told local news station WSAZ that paramedics rushed to Madison Middle School on Friday to treat a football player who had suffered a head injury.
Cohen was then taken to a hospital for further treatment; he succumbed to his injuries a day later, on Saturday. The Boone County Ambulance Authority, which treated his injuries, posted a memorial page for Cohen on its Facebook page.
“Today we are all Redhawks and the unimaginable loss of a bright young athlete in our community weighs on our hearts,” the post said.
Boone County Schools Superintendent Matthew Riggs released a statement on behalf of the schools.
“The entire Boone County Schools community begins to mourn the loss of Cohen Craddock, an eighth-grader at Madison Middle School. A Redhawk, Cohen was loved by his classmates, his teachers, his principals and the entire Madison Middle School staff,” the statement said.
The news sparked an outpouring of support from surrounding communities, and Roane County High School posted a memorial page on its Facebook page.
Schools across the US mourn deceased athletes
Cohen’s death in West Virginia is the latest in a handful of cases that have made headlines across the country as the football season begins, including some with unusual circumstances.
In Alabama, Caden Tellier, the quarterback at Morgan Academy in Selma, suffered a brain injury during his team’s first home game on Friday and died the following day. Tellier’s death followed that of 14-year-old Semaj Wilkins of New Brockton, who suffered a medical emergency during an afternoon football practice on Aug. 13 and died.
In Kansas, 15-year-old Ovet Gomez-Regalado died two days after suffering a medical emergency during a practice at his high school outside Kansas City on August 14.
And in Hopewell, Virginia, 15-year-old Javion Taylor died on August 5 after participating in light exercise for about 40 minutes.
Fernando Cervantes Jr. is a trending news reporter for USA TODAY. Reach him at [email protected] and follow him on X @fern_cerv_.
