High school football star, Lamar Patterson, passed away in a tragic car crash last Wednesday morning on his way to school. Details of how the crash occurred have yet to be released at the time of publication.
*Photo courtesy public Facebook profile.
Lamar Patterson was an incredibly talented football player who played both wide receiver and cornerback in high school. In the 2023 recruiting class, Patterson was rated as a three star prospect and ranked as the No. 8 overall prospect in the state of Maryland according to 247sports.com. Patterson electrified fans with his incredible talent and crafty playmaking skills. He torched high school defenses and secondaries while playing in Baltimore, MD at St. Frances Academy. He was well on his way to bringing his elite level of play to the world of Division I NCAA College Football. Patterson fielded college football scholarship offers from Power 5 programs such as Arizona State, Boston College, Tennessee, Ole Miss, Virginia Tech, and West Virginia.
Lamar Patterson’s Highlight Reel:
The sudden passing of Patterson particularly struck a chord with me because he also received an offer from my alma mater, Penn State. Penn State was one of his top two choices amongst the myriad of offers he received. I followed Patterson’s college football recruitment closely as a I felt his playing style fit perfectly with Mike Yurcich’s pass happy, explosive play offensive scheme. I held onto great hope that he would choose my beloved Nittany Lions and call Happy Valley his new home away from home. However, his football recruitment is now a trivial and moot matter.
Patterson’s untimely death shocks the world of football, but it is even more devastating for his friends, family, teachers, coaches, and teammates who knew Lamar Patterson as a hard working, disciplined young man with a bright future and the world in the palm of his hands. Those who knew Lamar Patterson did not lose an outstanding football player. They lost a son, a loved one, a friend. Nothing can be done to reverse the past. Nothing will heal the wounds of those who loved him. We will never see him catch another football or return a pick six. Lamar Patterson will be missed forever, but he will never be forgotten.
As for his death, while the details remain scare at this time, it is certain that someone is responsible for causing the car crash that killed Patterson. As more news related to the car crash surface, Patterson’s family may have a wrongful death case to pursue against the person who caused the accident. No amount of money will bring Lamar Patterson back to the world. No amount of money will fill the gigantic void left behind. No amount of money will heal his family. But it is the legal recourse that is available to his family to pursue action against the negligent individual who is responsible for causing the car crash that led to Lamar Patterson’s death. And if someone is responsible for Patterson’s death, they should pay for tearing him away from the world.
I pray for Lamar Patterson, his friends, and family. They say time heals all wounds, but from personal and professional experience, I highly disagree. In fact, as times moves forward, the sadness grows because the questions of what if, what could’ve been, what would’ve been, what should’ve been continue to grow as well. There is no happy ending to this story. There is only an ending. Rest in peace, Lamar Patterson.
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