Kent State football player Tyler Heintz died Tuesday morning after participating in a workout, the school announced.
Heintz, an incoming freshman offensive lineman who had arrived on campus earlier this week, was transported to a local hospital following conditioning drills at Dix Stadium, according to a news release from the school Tuesday night. The cause of death has not yet been determined.
He planned on studying marketing and entrepreneurship in Kent State’s college of business administration, the release said.
“Our heartfelt thoughts and prayers are with Tyler’s family and friends, as well as Coach [Paul] Haynes and the team, our athletics staff and our student-athletes,” the school said in a statement.
Heintz was an offensive tackle from Kenton, Ohio. The Kenton High School football Twitter account posted Tuesday afternoon that it was “shocked and bewildered” after learning of Heintz’s death.
Tyler Heintz passed away after a Kent State workout today Shocked and bewildered is all we can say. Pray for his family.
— Kenton Football 2017 (@Kenton_Football) June 13, 2017
What a great kid. Your football family will miss you pic.twitter.com/80JYvNbiTN
— Kenton Football 2017 (@Kenton_Football) June 13, 2017
Kent State lost another offensive lineman, Jason Bitsko, in August 2014 after he was found dead in his room. An autopsy determined Bitsko died of an enlarged heart that triggered an arrhythmia.
Portage County coroner Dr. Dean Perry told the Record-Courier newspaper that Heintz’s body had been transported to the Cuyahoga County Medical Examiner’s office, where an autopsy is scheduled for Wednesday.
Cause unknown after Kent State offensive lineman Tyler Heintz dies – ESPN