Tobi Oyedeji, Standout High School Basketball Player, Dies in Head-On Collision
By Ericka Blount Danois on May 17th 2010 11:08AM
Filed under: Basketball
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Fans, friends, and sympathizers alike are talking about the tragic death of standout player Tobi Oyedeji, who died in a car accident yesterday morning. The police say that he dropped his last friend off after prom night, called his father, Mike, and told him he was on his way home early Sunday morning, but he never made it home.
He was involved in a three-car collision, according to reports. As the third car in the collision, he crashed head-on in to another car.
The 6-foot-9, 220-pound, 18-year-old power forward from Bellaire High in Bellaire, Texas was an excellent student and athlete and was destined to be an impact player for Texas A&M in the fall, plus he was committed to studying engineering .
In football, the Baylor Bears and Texas A&M Aggies match-ups have been filled with more drama than a daytime soap opera in what’s called, “The Battle of the Brazos.” The schools are only 90 miles apart and are separated by the Brazos River. The basketball rivalries are just as playfully intense.
But family and friends are less concerned with basketball now. Oyedeji’s parents, Mike and Nikki, who lost their only son and are reported to be in intense emotional pain.
After attempts at life-saving surgery failed Sunday afternoon, Oyedeji was pronounced dead, according to Texas A&M coach Mark Turgeon.
“I loved that kid,” Turgeon told ESPN.com. “I loved that kid. This is really, really hard.”
Turgeon said Oyedeji was the first player he recruited when he took the job three years ago.
“This has been a three-year relationship, we were really close,” Turgeon said. “From the first day he came to our camp, I knew he was coming to Texas A&M. He was going to be an engineer. This was the perfect place for him.”
“He was going to be a big part of our program,” Turgeon said. “More than just basketball, his personality, his character, he would have helped us in so many ways. He was a great student. He epitomized the values we have here.”
Condolences go out to his friends and family.
Tagged as: Bellaire high, BellaireHigh, Mark Turgeon, MarkTurgeon, Texas AM, TexasAm, Tobi Oyedeji, TobiOyedeji
