GRAVETTE — A Gravette High School junior football player died Wednesday morning from a medical condition not related to football, Gravette Superintendent Andrea Kelly confirmed Wednesday afternoon.
A candlelight service was held Wednesday night for Casey Russell, a junior who started at righttackle on the football team. Russell started feeling ill last week and was held out of the game in Wellington, Kan., last Friday night because of backpain. The problem didn't seem serious until Tuesday, when he went to the doctor. Russell was in renal failure and needed emergency surgery.
During surgery, a staph infection was discovered. Russell was flown from Bentonville to Arkansas Children's Hospital in Little Rock around 9:30 p.m. Tuesday. Russell never recovered from the anesthesia, Kelly said. He was pronounced dead around 11 a.m. Wednesday.
Kelly said there is no immediate concern for the safety of other students because there was no open wound that would allow the staph infection to be transferred. The school is taking precautionary measures and sanitizing all appropriate areas, she said.
As word spread about Russell'sillness Tuesday night, then about his death Wednesday, students and staff expressed grief.
Coach Bill Harrelson said the abrupt nature of Russell's death was tough to absorb.
"He was an asset to us in every way," Harrelson said. "He was definitely a team person. He had a smile on his face and did whatever he was asked to do. In the classroom, on the field and in the locker room, he was an asset."
Harrelson met with the team on two separate occasions Wednesday, but the Lions did not practice.
"It was a very hard task to tell the team," Harrelson said. "It's just something - 16-, 17-and 18-year-old kids think they're invincible. It's a tough chore to tell them their teammate's passed away."
Athletics Director Norman Mitchell said the school will make some decisions today about how to progress the rest of the week.The Lions host Pea Ridge on Friday night.
"It's been a difficult several hours," Mitchell said.
Kelly said specific memorial plans have not been set, but Russell will be honored at Friday's homecoming game.
"They are a very close-knit team," Kelly said. "This game will be for Casey."
Sports editor Paul Gatling contributed to this report.
News, Pages 1, 7 on 09/24/2009