- Brandon Smith's body was reportedly found Sunday evening
- And his family now says the 17-year-old was shot and killed
- DailyMail.com provides all the latest international sports news
Fallen high school football player Brandon Smith has been shot dead, it has been revealed.
Smith was found dead Sunday, a day before his Manchester High School football team was scheduled to compete in the Georgia Class A Division II final.
And a local news station 11Alive was told by Smith's family that the 17-year-old died in a shooting, with police saying his body was found in the woods.
Before Manchester High's championship game at the Falcons' Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Smith's teammates honored him by holding up his No. 52 jersey as they walked to midfield.
The Blue Devils lost the game 28-27, but their coach was extremely proud of the fight they put up.
Brandon Smith was reported missing on Saturday and found dead on Sunday, according to reports
And his teammates honored him by holding up his jersey before the championship game
Smith and his Manchester High football teammates had reached the state championship
“All those people out there, our community, those people watching at home — they're looking to us for strength tonight,” Stephen Holmes said.
“And those 48 young men, those 15, 16, 17-year-olds came out there and showed it. I'm just super, super proud of them.
11 Alive also reported that Holmes was the one who notified Smith's family that his body had been found.
“I'm not going to rest until they catch the killer who killed my grandson,” his grandmother said.
Smith's coach Stephen Holmes praised the “strength” of his team's players
Smith's grandmother added after the tragic death that football was his “everything.”
Smith died just hours before he was set to take the field in Atlanta at Mercedes-Benz Stadium
“His play, all his teammates, football was his everything. And he wanted to make it. But his life was cut short.
No charges have yet been filed in the shooting, according to the station, which cited the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.
The letter released by Meriwether Schools Superintendent Robert Griffin and Manchester Principal Suze Neal said: “We are heartbroken to hear the news of the tragic and untimely death of one of our student-athletes, Brandon Smith.
“Manchester High School's celebration of playing for the Georgia 1-A State Football Championship has unfortunately turned into something that none of us could have fathomed.”