University of Mobile basketball player Kaiden Francis died Tuesday after collapsing on campus.
Francis, a 6-foot-2 freshman guard from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, collapsed Tuesday morning.
“Despite the quick and heroic efforts of students and medical professionals, Kaiden never recovered and passed away earlier today,” University of Mobile President Dr. Charles Smith said in a statement to AL.com. “Our hearts are heavy as we process this tragedy.”
Wednesday’s classes have been canceled to allow the university community time to gather. There will be campus-wide time of prayer and mourning on Wednesday.
“My family and I had the privilege of watching Kaiden play just last week,” Smith’s statement read. “He was profoundly gifted and clearly loved by his teammates. As you can imagine, Kaiden’s family, coaches, and teammates are heartbroken and need our prayers.
“As we walk through this together, I want to encourage you to remember where our help and hope come from. You may recall the first chapel of the semester began with a simple, but profound question: ‘Who is God?’
“Psalm 23 reminded us that even in the darkest valleys, we can trust that God is good, God is in control, and God is working all things – including this unspeakable tragedy – together for His glory and the good of His people. That doesn’t answer all our questions, nor does it bring our friend back, but it does point us to our deepest need: faith in The One who has always been, and will always be, faithful. As we grieve together, let’s do so with eyes fixed squarely on Jesus.”
The No. 24 Rams are coming off an 81-49 win at No. 20 Life on Saturday to improve to 6-0 on the season and 2-0 in conference play. Francis came off the bench to score 10 points in the win.
The University of Mobile is a Christ-centered liberal arts and sciences university integrating faith and learning with a vision of higher education for a higher purpose.
