OXFORD, Miss., Feb. 19 (UPI) -- A 20-year-old University of Mississippi football player died Friday after collapsing during a conditioning drill, team officials said.
Junior Bennie Abram was participating in the first day of the team's routine conditioning program in Oxford, Miss., when he started experiencing difficulty and collapsed, Ole Miss head Coach Houston Nutt said.
Trainers administered first aid and called 911, and Abram was taken to Baptist Memorial Hospital-North Mississippi where he died several hours later.
"Bennie was a fine young man and a hard worker," Nutt said. "He was a great person to be around and a well-mannered young man. His loss is so tragic. Our hearts and prayers go out to the family and all who knew Bennie."
Abram, of Southaven, Miss., transferred to Ole Miss from Itawamba Community College last fall.
