The death of 20-year-old, University of Louisiana at Monroe quarterback, Daniel Fitzwater, has been a hard pill to swallow for his loved ones, teammates, and friends alike. In spite of the hurt that the Fitzwater family is left to battle after the stunning death of their son, Mark Fitzwater is left with a sense of peace as he spoke on Wednesday at his son’s memorial service held in Shreveport.
Daniel Fitzwater
According to a quote published by the Shreveport times Mike stated that, “He was a total joy as a son and I loved him so much.” “My wife, Kelli, and the whole family take great comfort in knowing none of this came as a surprise to God. Daniel’s days were written in his book and planned out before a single day of his life.”
The memorial service comes after the wake of the news that Daniel Fitzwater, back-up quarterback for the ULM Warhawks, had passed away on Saturday. The cause of Fitzwater’s death is yet to be determined but self-infliction or foul play is not suspected.
Todd Berry, head football coach for ULM, shed light on the events leading up to Saturday.
According to the Monroe News Star, Berry states that Fitzwater spent the night with his sister, a student at Louisiana Tech, in Ruston on Friday night after attending the Calvary Babtist-Union Parish High School game is Farmerville with his family.
Fitzwater’s brother plays football for Calvary and the high school is also where Daniel played and set numerous of football records all in one season.
“When his sister awoke the next morning she went in to try and awaken him and he was nonresponsive,” stated Berry.
Fitzwater, a 6-foot-5, 233-pound and The Times’ 2012 All-City quarterback recipient never had a chance to see the Warhawk’s field due to a knee injury that he suffered during fall camp.
Berry states that he had gotten the news around noon on Saturday, alerted the administration to let them know what was going, and then went on to tell the players at their 2:45 pregame meal before they played Georgia Southern. Fitzwater was honored on the jumbotron before the game and even with the 51-31 score lose, Berry states he couldn't have been prouder of his players and how they conducted themselves on the field.
“I appreciate everyone who stayed until the end of the ball game. It was very difficult for those young men to go out and play football,” stated Berry.