West Virginia middle school student passes away after sustaining injury during football practice
Cohen Craddock, 14, tragically lost his life on Saturday after being injured at football practice on Friday in Madison, West Virginia. The community has come together to show their support as the news spread.
A community in West Virginia is grieving the loss of a middle school athlete who passed away on Saturday, just one day after suffering an injury during football practice.
Cohen Craddock, an eighth grader at Madison Middle School in Madison, West Virginia, died on Saturday following injuries incurred during football practice the day before. Madison is approximately 30 miles from Charleston, the state capital.
According to Joseph Smith, the executive director of the Boone County Ambulance Authority, emergency responders were called to Madison Middle School on Friday to assist a football player who had a head injury.
Cohen was transported to a hospital for additional care; however, he did not survive his injuries and passed away the next day. The Boone County Ambulance Authority who responded to the incident shared a tribute to Cohen on their Facebook page.
“Today, we stand united as Redhawks, mourning the unimaginable loss of a talented young athlete from our community,” the post read.
Matthew Riggs, Superintendent of Boone County Schools, issued a statement on behalf of the school district.
“The entire Boone County Schools community is starting to grieve the loss of Cohen Craddock, an 8th-grade student at Madison Middle School. As a Redhawk, Cohen held a special place in the hearts of his peers, teachers, administrators, and the whole Madison Middle School personnel,” the statement said.
In the wake of this tragedy, support has poured in from surrounding communities, including Roane County High School, which shared a memorial post on their Facebook page.
Schools nationwide honor fallen athletes
Cohen’s passing adds to a series of recent tragedies involving young athletes across the country as football season begins, some of which have unique circumstances.
In Alabama, Caden Tellier, a quarterback for Morgan Academy in Selma, suffered a brain injury during the team’s home opener on a Friday and sadly died the next day. Tellier’s death followed that of 14-year-old Semaj Wilkins from New Brockton, who experienced a medical emergency during a football practice on August 13 and subsequently passed away.
In Kansas, 15-year-old Ovet Gomez-Regalado passed away two days after encountering a medical emergency during practice on August 14 at his high school near Kansas City.
In Hopewell, Virginia, 15-year-old Javion Taylor died following 40 minutes of light practice drills on August 5.
