Florida

Florida High School Football Player Dies After Practice

A 14-year-old high school student in central Florida died Wednesday after participating in his football team’s camp at a local military base.

The Clay County Sheriff’s Office said William Shogran, Jr, 14, was not from an area school, but was a home-school student athlete from Sebastian River High School. The CCSO said the football team was at a military base in Starke called Camp Blanding for its start-of-season camp when the teen became ill.

The CCSO said a coach called 911 and the young player was taken from the camp site to Shands (Starke) Regional Medical Center in Bradford County. The player was pronounced dead by doctors at the hospital.

In a 911 recording, a coach reported that a player needed medical assistance for a "heat injury" and that he had vomited.

The dispatcher asked if the boy was awake. The coach said he was.

"They've got water on him, trying to cool him down," the coach said.

The ninth-grader was taken to Shands Regional Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead.

"Coaches are at the hospital and coaches are also at the camp/base with the teammates," said Mary Justino, a sheriff's office spokeswoman.

Bill Fritz, an official with the Indian River County School District, said members of the team were heading back to the high school and that grief counselors were being made available.

"The school district and Sebastian River High School communities are deeply saddened by this news," Fritz said in a statement.

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