Tajh Boyd, a football player for Liberty University in Virginia, had died, the school announced on Monday. He was 19 years old. The cause of death was not announced, but according to ESPN, a spokesperson for the Lynchburg police said the department looked into Boyd’s death and determined a criminal investigation was not necessary.
“It is with heavy hearts that we share the news of the loss of one of our student-athletes, Tajh Boyd,” Liberty University Vice President and Director of Athletics Ian McCaw and head coach Jamey Chadwell said in a statement. “Tajh joined our Liberty Football family as recently as January and his impact on the program will be felt for years to come. When you come to the Mountain, you immediately become a part of the Liberty University family and something truly special. We thank God for bringing Tajh into our Liberty Athletics community and we will always remember him as a Flame. Tajh will be missed dearly.
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“Our thoughts and prayers are with Tajh’s family, his teammates and friends, our football coaching staff, as well as our entire athletics department and the greater Liberty University community. We grieve together as a family and will seek guidance, comfort and understanding from the Lord during these difficult times.”
Boyd joined Liberty after playing high school football at Oscar F. Smith in Chesapeake, Virginia. He received offers from Bowling Green, Buffalo, Campbell, Duke, Jackson State, James Madison, Maine, Maryland, Morgan State, Norfolk State, North Carolina A&T and Virginia Tech before deciding to play for the Flames. During his time at Oscar F. Smith, Boyd helped the team reach consecutive state championships.
In an interview by Liberty, Boyd talked about the one thing he does before he hits the field. “I pray before every game,” he said. “I do that because anything could go wrong and if you ask God to cover you in Jesus’ blood everything will go your way or the best way that God has in store for you.”
Boyd also revealed his favorite possession. “My Jordan grape fives – I wanted those shoes so bad when they came out and I couldn’t get them due to financial situations and recently I came across them,” Boyd revealed. “They were brand new in my size and affordable. I got made fun of for not getting those shoes in a primary school so it really feels good to have them now.”
