Wekiva H.S. students remember fallen football player

The autopsy of a Wekiva High School football player is complete, but examiners are still awaiting lab reports for an official cause of death.

Olivier Louis, 15, died while at football practice on Tuesday. He died a short time later at a local hospital.

"I would call the mood inside quiet, very quiet," said Kathy Marsh, a spokeswoman for Orange County Public Schools.

Wekiva students started their day Wednesday around the school flag pole for a prayer vigil.

Classmates were wearing black and white to honor Louis. 

Grief counselors will likely be there through the week for students grieving the lost.

"One thing they are trying to do is maintain some kind of normalcy for the school day,” Marsh said. “That's important when trying to get through a crisis."

Orange County Sheriff’s deputies simply stated the investigation is still active and are following up with interviews on Tuesday to learn more about what Louis was doing leading up to his untimely death.

The official cause of Louis’ death is still unknown, but Orange County school officials said there was plenty of water available for the players, and like all other student athletes, he was required to complete a physical that asked about prior conditions such as heart murmurs or allergies.

Family told News 13 the young man, who recently moved to Orange County, was perfectly healthy as far as they knew.

Meanwhile, students and parents flocked to Facebook to leave kind words, which were also mentioned Wednesday morning for students in class.

"This morning the principal said during morning announcements, made a comment that the fact that life is so fragile and life goes by so quickly and to please take care of one another," Marsh said.

“I seen him when we were going to the locker room, he was just sitting down,” said teammate Quonterius Thomas.
 
Teammates and friends also took time to remember their friend. 
 
“He was a good kid. He loved to laugh. He loved to have fun,” said friend King Wood.

As a freshman at Wekiva, his friends said he was proud to have made the freshman football team. While Louis may not have had time to leave a lasting legacy on the football field, his death has taught the students a lesson.

“You never think something like this will happen. I mean, we have players that sometimes pass out, but you never think they're going die. So it's really shocking right now. I'm sad," said classmate Jasmine Cole. 

“I know it hurt his mom. She thinking her baby's coming home after football practice, she saying she going to take a shower, cook for him and stuff. And he end up in the hospital and not coming home. That hurts a mother,” said teammate Kyle Kimber.

School officials cancelled all football practice Wednesday, as well as the JV football game.

However, the varsity Friday night matchup between Wekiva and Apopka will go on as scheduled.

A moment of silence will be held before the game in honor of Louis.

Orange County Public Schools issued the following statement Wednesday evening.

The death of 15-year-old, Wekiva High School freshman football player Olivier Louis is tragic and rare on our district’s playing fields. When parents allow students to sign up for extra-curricular athletics in Orange County, parents place great trust in our coaches and trainers. There are still many questions regarding Olivier’s passing but we do know that this young man was an excellent student who displayed good sportsmanship and was well-liked by all who knew him. We know that Olivier had a physical exam prior to his playing freshman football as mandated by the Florida High School Athletic Association (FHSAA). We also have great confidence that our athletic coaches and trainers are properly prepared and educated to create a safe environment. In fact, our trainers are certified medical professionals who maintain current CPR/AED certification.

After the recent incident at Apopka High School, where several football players were overcome by heat and treated at the hospital, our athletic trainers attended a special session to reemphasize nutrition and hydration information. Each school’s athletic trainer was given time to meet with all football team members and football staff to remind them of proper nutrition and hydration prior to the start of the following day’s practice. In the case of freshman football players, athletic trainers met with the freshman players prior to the start of their first practice session. Our trainers discussed sufficient water breaks at practice, the importance of eating breakfast and lunch before attending practices, as well avoiding caffeine/energy drinks. This is all in an effort to maintain the safety of our student athletes.

Again, the district mourns the loss of Olivier Louis. Wekiva High School is planning several moments and/or events to memorialize Olivier Louis. The school will plant a tree in his honor and erect a plaque near the tree. Players from Apopka and Wekiva high school football teams will participate in a moment of silence prior to Friday night’s game at Wekiva High School. Wekiva varsity players will wear a black emblem with Olivier’s initials on their helmets at Friday’s game. Olivier’s fellow teammates plan to give his family a football signed with all team members’ names as well as a helmet. Freshman team members have not yet selected their jersey numbers for the season but Olivier’s number will be selected by his fellow team members.