Any coach or player on the Eastern Greene football team had little interest in the IHSAA’s release of the sectional draw on Sunday.
The T-Birds discovered that junior receiver/defensive back Jedd Cummings was murdered in an automobile accident close to his home early on Sunday morning, turning one of the season’s most anticipated days into a day of sadness. He was 16.
According to a news release about the incident, the Greene County Sheriff’s Office received a call at 4:22 a.m. reporting a single-vehicle accident with potential injuries in the vicinity of Indiana 45, about a half-mile south of Interstate 69. According to the initial inquiry, Cummings’ black passenger automobile drove off the east side of the road before colliding with the object. On the spot, he was declared dead. “The inquiry is underway and no further details will be shared at this time,” the announcement stated.
It sent shockwaves through the tight-knit community.
“It’s never a phone call you really train for as a coach or a person in leadership, to get that early in the morning,” Eastern Greene football coach Travis Wray said. “The administration let us call all the coaches and players before they made the announcement to the community.
“We’re in the grieving process right now. Football is the last thing on our minds. As a staff, our goal now is to make sure the boys get what they need, whether that’s football practice or sitting in a room with us.”
That’s exactly what happened as word circulated on Sunday afternoon. Players began pouring in after the coaching staff convened at the school because they needed someone to share the misery of the circumstance with.
