Florida international football player Luke Knox The school announced Thursday that he has passed away at the age of 22.
Knox, born in Brentwood, Tennessee, and younger brother of Buffalo Bills Dawson KnoxHe spent the past four seasons at Ole Miss before moving to the Financial Intelligence Unit.
School officials said Knox, who studied business administration, died Wednesday evening. The cause was not disclosed, although the university said police did not suspect an error.
“Words cannot express the deep sadness we feel at the passing of our colleague and friend Luke Knox,” FIU coach Mike McIntyre said in a statement. “It was an honor to coach Luke at the Ole Miss and FIU. While I admired his passion for football, his true love for his family and teammates is one I will always remember. He had a special way of making everyone around him feel comfortable and confident.”
Knox started two games at linebacker for the Ole Miss in 2019, when MacIntyre served as defensive coordinator. He played mostly with special teams in the last two seasons and made 11 tackles, two for losing, in 2021.
“We send our thoughts and prayers to Luke’s family, friends and colleagues during this difficult time,” the athletics unit said in a statement. “Coaches and support staff are reaching out to our football family and will continue to do so to ensure our student-athletes receive the support they need.”
FIU players were informed of Knox’s death late Wednesday. Thursday’s practice has been canceled, and grief counselors have been brought in to meet with the team and others from the university community.
Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin also offered his condolences at A tweet Thursday morning.
“I am so grateful for my personal relationship and the time I had with Luke,” Kevin said. “He was such a great teammate and an even better person that he lifted everyone around him.”
Bills coach Sean McDermott said he woke up Thursday morning to the news and confirmed that the franchise will support Dawson Knox and his family.
“My heart breaks – our hearts are with Dawson and his family during this time,” McDermott said. “We are there with him and support him and his family and the news of tragic news I woke up from this morning. So we love him, support him and bring the sad news this morning.”
Alaina Getzenberg of ESPN and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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