The Virginia-based evangelical Christian school Liberty University has announced that freshman offensive lineman Tajh Boyd has passed away. He was 19 years old.
“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. 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.”
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No cause of death has been reported at this time.
In a joint statement, Liberty head coach Jamey Chadwell and athletic director Ian McCaw said, “Tajh joined our Liberty Football family as recently as January, and his impact on the program will be felt for years to come,” The Christian Post reports.
According to CBS Sports, Boyd, who was 6 foot 4 and weighed 295 pounds, was signed by Liberty out of Oscar F. Smith High School as part of the 2023 recruiting class. He also had plans to become a computer science engineer post-graduation.
During his high school football career, Boyd won back-to-back state championships and received a three-star prospect rating in the most recent recruiting class. According to his Liberty athletics biography page, he had received offers from several universities, including Duke, Maryland, and Virginia Tech.
Boyd previously told The News & Advance, Liberty’s Sports Information department, about his dream to travel to Tokyo someday. He also shared that he prayed before every game and described receiving his first athletic scholarship as his most memorable athletic moment.
Boyd cited his mother’s determination as his primary inspiration to succeed.
“She raised me by herself with no help, and she [is] the strongest person I know,” he said. “She never gave up.”
Conference USA, which welcomed Liberty into the conference this summer, released a statement expressing their condolences.
“We are deeply saddened to learn of the passing of Liberty football student-athlete Tajh Boyd,” the conference said in a statement. “Our thoughts are with the Boyd family and Flames nation during this difficult time.”
Photo corutesy: ©Getty Images/Chip Somodevilla/Staff
Milton Quintanilla is a freelance writer and content creator. He is a contributing writer for Christian Headlines and the host of the For Your Soul Podcast, a podcast devoted to sound doctrine and biblical truth. He holds a Masters of Divinity from Alliance Theological Seminary.
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