UNLV football player Ryan Keeler ‘felt sick & had nausea for at least a week prior to his death’
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UNLV football player Ryan Keeler ‘was dealing with nausea and felt ill for at least a week prior to his death,’ police report says, after a 20-year-old was found unconscious in bed in a study.
Police reports revealed that UNLV football player Ryan Keeler had been dealing with illness for “at least seven days” before he was found dead in a Las Vegas apartment building.
Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department documents obtained by TMZ reveal that Keeler was found dead in a bed inside a studio apartment, and that after he was discovered, interviews with a friend of his said Keeler had been battling an illness since February 13.
Those documents also detail the friend’s claim that he had seen Keeler at dinner the day before he was found dead and that the football player was “feeling a little better.”
The report also details that a man identified by the title “director of sports medicine” told police that Keeler received an unidentified prescription drug on February 17 and visited him two days later.
Police say UNLV assistant coach Julio Garcia was the first to spot Keeler, after giving him a wellness check earlier that day.
UNLV football player Ryan Keeler had been feeling ill in the days leading up to his death on February 20, according to reports from the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police.
Reports say Garcia knocked on Keeler’s door, then broke it down when there was no answer.
Garcia found Keeler unconscious and called 911, describing the defensive end as “cold to the touch” when he saw him.
Once police arrived, they discovered Keeler dead and lying on his back in bed with an empty prescription drug bottle also at the scene.
The 6-foot-6, 275-pound defensive lineman arrived via transfer from Rutgers this season and played in seven games for the Rebels.
Both of Keeler’s football families, in both New Jersey and Nevada, led tributes to the late player who recorded one sack and eight tackles.
UNLV athletic director Erick Harper said in a statement after his death, “The UNLV family mourns the sudden loss of one of our own today.”
“Our hearts go out to all of Ryan’s family and friends along with his Rebel teammates.”
Longtime Rutgers coach Greg Schiano also paid tribute, saying there was more to the human being behind the helmet.
Keeler was prescribed an undisclosed medication to help him deal with the disease.
Keeler passed away at age 20, prompting tributes from Rutgers and UNLV football teams
“From meeting him as a recruit to getting to train him, what stood out the most was his passion.
‘His passion for his teammates and his passion for football. We send our love and prayers to Ryan’s family and friends during this difficult time.”
“Ryan was definitely setting himself up for a big year this year, but more important than that, he was honestly a great person,” Keeler’s former teammate Austin Ajiake said. fox5.
‘I never complained, he had a great attitude, showed up and worked every day. He was the kind of teammate you wanted around you… I am heartbroken for his family and offer my condolences and prayers.’