CLARKSVILLE, TN (CLARKSVILLE NOW) – As Austin Peay State University mourns the loss of 18-year-old freshman football player Jeremiah Collins, the university has scheduled a prayer vigil at Fortera Stadium, according to their Twitter.
Collins, of Lascassas, Tennessee, was killed in a single-vehicle crash on Briley Parkway on Friday, July 21, according to the Metro Nashville Police Department.
Authorities said Jeremiah was traveling at a high rate of speed when he tried to take an exit, which caused his pickup truck to leave the road, roll several times, and come to rest in a grassy area. Collins was taken to TriStar Skyline Medical Center, where he later died.
On Sunday, July 23, a vigil was held for Jeremiah in Murfreesboro, drawing dozens of people to the Oakland High School football field, according to Clarksville Now news partner WKRN-Channel 2 in Nashville.
“As hard as this is, as difficult as it is, I know that God always has a plan and a purpose, and maybe that is to bring all these all these people together, and that’s what my son was about,” Melvin Collins, Jeremiah’s father, told News 2. “He was a ray of sunshine. … He brought people together. He was a positive role model.”
In a Sunday afternoon tweet, APSU Athletics thanked the community for the “outpouring of love and support for Jeremiah and the Collins family.”
The APSU prayer vigil is planned for Tuesday, July 25, at 6 p.m., at Fortera Stadium.
In addition, the university shared a link to Govs Care — a fund created by APSU Athletics to support student-athletes and their families amid emergencies, catastrophic injuries, and crisis-care situations — to help raise money for Collins’ funeral arrangements. To donate, click here.
Clarksville Now news partner WKRN-Channel 2 in Nashville contributed to this report.