Alabama high school football player dies after injury during game: “His way of life touched many people”

An Alabama high school football player died after being seriously injured during a game on Friday.

Caden Tellier, a 16-year-old junior at Morgan Academy, was injured after a tackle in the third quarter of Friday night's school game against Southern Academy in Selma. School principal Bryan Oliver confirmed to CBS News that the quarterback suffered a brain injury. He was flown to the University of Alabama Hospital in Birmingham on Friday evening.

The boy's family announced his death on social media.

“Our boy Caden Tellier has come to know Jesus face to face. We are grateful for all of your prayers and ask for them as we face difficult days ahead,” they said in a statement on Facebook. “Everyone who knows Caden has experienced kindness, generosity and love, and true to his nature, he gives of himself once again. His life touched lives and now, through his death, lives are being saved.”

Michael McClendon, executive director of the Alabama Independent School Association, said in a statement to CBS News on Sunday: “It is believed that Caden suffered a brain hematoma following a routine play in which he was carrying the ball and was knocked to the ground,” but noted that the school is “still gathering details about the accident” and that “it may be quite some time before we have more information about his injury.”

In a statement on the school's Facebook page, Oliver also confirmed the teenager's death, saying he was “a shining light every day he graced the halls of Morgan Academy.”

“There are no words to describe how we feel as a school community and family,” the statement said. “Caden will never be forgotten for who he was and what he meant to Morgan Academy.”

The school is canceling all sports activities for the coming week, including the football game scheduled for this Friday at Wilcox Academy, Oliver said.