GREENSBORO, May 28, 2008 – North Carolina A&T State University regrets to announce the death of football player Chad Wiley, a senior business management major.  Wiley died today from complications of heat illness. 

 He collapsed yesterday, May 27, after a supervised voluntary workout on the campus of N.C. A&T.  An A&T athletic trainer was on site and took immediate action by stabilizing him and calling emergency services. He was immediately transported to Moses H. Cone Memorial Hospital.

Wiley, 22, was a native of Black Mountain, N.C. He was a three-year letterman for the Aggies and a two-year starter on the offensive line.

“We lost a fine young man and a great teammate,” said interim athletics director Wheeler Brown. “Our hearts go out to his family.  Head Coach Lee Fobbs and I have been in close contact with the family throughout this unfortunate incident.  They have requested privacy during this time.”

 “The Aggie family is deeply saddened by the death of this young athlete who had so much potential on and off the field,” added Chancellor Stanley F. Battle.

A&T’s Counseling Services is prepared to provide counseling for students on campus and is available to assist others needing support.   

Statement from head football coach Lee Fobbs, Jr.

 “We as a family and a football team are in a state of mourning for the loss of Chad Edward Wiley. We request the media respect our wishes in this time of bereavement and let our young men peacefully go through the healing process. It was very unfortunate what happened. He was a great kid – a really good kid.”

Statement from Tim Shropshire, senior linebacker and teammate and friend of Chad Wiley

“Chad Wiley was a brother to all of us. I came in with Chad my freshman year. We were going through our fifth season together. No one knew this was going to happen. But Chad was a fighter and Chad was a true brother.

Chad loved all of us, and he showed his love for us on and off the field. He carried himself well on the football field and in the classroom. He helped his teammates study. He helped me this past semester to make sure I wasn’t slacking.

He was a humble man. He loved everybody. He was the type of friend everyone wants and the kind of teammate you want on your team. Chad was the type of brother you would want as a brother and the type of son you would want as a son.

We were blessed to have him and he will be missed. We as his brothers are going to miss him. This is a shock to all of us. But we still love him and we’re still going to fight for him.”

Statement from Dr. Sullivan A. Welborne Jr., Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs

“Mr. Wiley was a part of our family. When you have a family sometimes tragedies come. That is why we want the public to know we have things in place to provide students help because any time something of this nature happens you must be able to respond.

Therefore, we have our counselors that are on duty to assists not just the general student population, but the individual athletes. When unexpected things like this happen, you have to respond quickly to make sure that our young people are able to cope. As the weeks and days go by, whatever part of our population needs assistance, the office of student affairs through its counseling services will provide that.

We will make sure our students are able to adjust and still function as a part of the general student population. This is a time that will bring out our courage because when you have the courage to stand you will prevail.”