A member of the California University of Pennsylvania football team died Tuesday, reportedly due to COVID-19 complications.
The Division II university confirmed the death of Jamain Stephens, a 20-year-old senior defensive tackle and business administration major.
"Jamain was such a wonderful student with a smile on his face every time you saw him," California University of Pennsylvania athletic director Dr. Karen Herpe said. "His personality was contagious and he made such a positive impact on everyone he met."
Stephens played in 32 games over three seasons with Cal U, according to an obituary in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Stephens had graduated from Central Catholic High School in Pittsburgh in 2017.
“He lit up a room,” Terry Totten, Stephens’ high school football coach, said of his former player in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. “He was one heck of a kid. Kind, intelligent, funny. He was electric.”
A GoFundMe page has been set up to help pay for funeral expenses.
Stephens’ dad, also named Jamain, played five seasons in the NFL after being drafted 29th overall by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the 1996 draft.
According to CBS Sports, Cal U wasn’t playing football this fall after the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference suspended all competition during the first semester of the 2020-21 school year.
