Rising high school senior and linebacker Jicarre Watkins, 19, was being recruited to play football at Troy University after graduation.
Teammate Shawn Waters, 18, was rebounding from a broken leg and ready to help the Brooks County High School Trojans to a second straight chance at the playoffs.
And rising junior Johnie Parker, 18, was looking forward to his first year as a starting linebacker on the team that regularly packs out the local Veterans Stadium and some say gives Friday nights in this community “almost a holiday feeling.”
But all those dreams were dashed, and a small South Georgia community’s heart was broken Tuesday morning. The three were killed, and a fourth teammate was injured, when the Ford SUV in which they were riding careened off the road and into a tree 20 miles west of Valdosta.
They were heading to football practice, and head coach Maurice Freeman was “a minute behind them” in his car.
“All three were hardworking and high-spirited kids,” Freeman said. “Their parents were good people in the community. It hurt our hearts to lose these special kids.”
The State Patrol in Valdosta is investigating.
Brooks County Coroner Mike Miller said it rained the night before, but the skies were clear and the pavement was dry. The SUV was traveling a straight stretch of Webster Road, not far from the high school, he said.
Watkins, Waters and Parker were pronounced dead at the scene from trauma, Miller said.
The fourth player, rising junior De’Vron Whitfield, was life-flighted to Shands Hospital in Jacksonville, Fla., where he underwent surgery Tuesday afternoon, the coroner said.
News of the accident spread quickly, and some parents rushed to the school board offices to try to find out more information.
“It’s such a small town. It didn’t take long for everybody to find out,” said Sharah Denton, school system spokeswoman.
The Brooks County Board of Education canceled its Tuesday night meeting, and a prayer vigil was instead held in the high school cafeteria.
Counselors were available to students, staff and football team members who needed help coping with the news, Denton said.
“Everybody is really down,” said Jim McGhee Jr., a local funeral home director. “This is a very small town. We don’t really have things like this happen.”
Brooks County High’s football team finished 12-1 last season and won region 1-AA.
The season was highlighted by a 28-24 upset victory over Valdosta High School and the first 10-0 season in Brooks County High School’s history, which dates back to 1959.
“These kids were well liked on and off the field,” said Charles H. Perry, a high school administrator who was an assistant coach of the team last year. “They were outgoing kids. They were positive and hardworking.”
Football, Perry said, is “a huge part of this community.”
“Everyone was looking forward to the upcoming season,” he said. “People were coming out to watch the summer practice and see how these guys are progressing. They come to practice to see just how hard these guys work.”
The football team’s grief, Perry said, is especially keen.
“These guys have played football with each other all their lives,” he said. “They lost an important part of their family today.”
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