It was no ordinary week for North Carolina football head coach Mack Brown, as he’s issued a statement about wide receiver Tylee Craft passing away from cancer on Saturday
Craft, 23, was diagnosed with Stage 4 lung cancer on March 14, 2022, per ESPN’s Heather Dinich. North Carolina honored Craft during the Week 7 game against Georgia Tech, and many of the Tar Heels players wore shirts with his name and number. Wide receiver J.J. Jones wore Craft’s jersey with his No. 13 and last name in the Georgia Tech matchup. Brown, who didn’t know about Craft’s death until after the Tar Heels game, offered his sentiment to reporters following the game.
“This young man fought so hard for his two and a half years,” Brown said. “The doctors told us he outlived what he should’ve. And he did it with the spirit, he did it with a smile on his face, he didn’t miss a meeting, he didn’t miss practice, he coached these other incredible young people.”
Tylee Craft’s football career
Craft was a highly-touted prospect from Sumter, South Carolina. He committed to North Carolina in April 2019. In 2022, he was named the recipient of the 2022 Disney Spirit Award, and he was one of five college athletes named to the Uplifting Athletes Rare Disease Champion Team that year.
“I think the family feels the love, and they’ll continue to feel the love,” Brown said. “What we’ve got to do is be strong and pray for strength for us as leaders to help these guys on the field and off the field. … So more than ever before I have got to step up and be stronger for them and make sure that I can help them manage the stuff and move forward in their lives.”
