ATLANTA — Members of the Georgia Tech athletic department gathered on campus Monday to remember the life of Brandon Adams, a football player who died over the weekend.
A closed vigil was held for Adams’ family, teammates and fellow Georgia Tech athletes at McCamish Pavilion. Adams, a rising senior and defensive tackle, died at the age of 21.
Channel 2 Action News spoke with former Georgia Tech coach Paul Johnson minutes before the service began. Johnson said he is coming to terms with what happened.
"You’re just kind of like stunned, I mean, you just don’t expect it," the former coach said. "Just an outgoing, friendly guy that was a big teddy bear. He was a big guy, but he had a heart as big as all outdoors. He’s going to really be missed."
Atlanta police confirmed to Channel 2 investigative reporter Aaron Diamant they were contacted by Georgia Tech police after 1 a.m. Sunday about the player's death. Georgia Tech police told APD the 21-year-old collapsed at a townhome near campus.
Adams’ friends took him to Emory Midtown Hospital where he was pronounced dead, according to an APD spokesperson.
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Channel 2 Action News learned the Georgia Bureau of Investigation completed an autopsy on Adams Monday. The GBI told Diamant the results were inconclusive and more tests will be done to determine his cause of death.
"It’s not unusual. In this particular case there are going to be additional test that are conducted and those additional forensic tests do take time," GBI spokeswoman Nelly Miles said.
Miles told Channel 2 getting those tests done is a now top priority for the agency's crime lab, even as it works other cases.
Georgia Tech was set to begin spring practice Tuesday. The school said the team’s seniors and captains have decided to move forward with the practice.
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