CHEYENNE — Wyoming coach Dave Christensen said his team is trying to maintain its normal routine to help players cope with the death of a teammate in a car accident and prepare for the Cowboys’ game against No. 5 Texas.
“We think it will help the kids get their mind on something different at different points of time throughout the day,” Christensen said Tuesday. “And we’ll take it one day at a time. There’s not a manual on how to do these things.”
The team held its regularly scheduled position meetings and practices Tuesday in preparation for its game Saturday at Texas.
“I thought we had a physical practice, a pretty spirited practice, and it was good the way that they came out and competed today,” Christensen said. “I think that they had an opportunity to take two, two-and-a-half hours to get their minds on something else. I thought they performed well today.”
Freshman linebacker Ruben Narcisse, 19, of Miami, died in an accident Monday after he and several other Cowboys teammates visited friends in Fort Collins over the weekend.
“Just a great young man, had a smile on his face all the time,” Christensen said of Narcisse.
One player remained hospitalized Tuesday, while two others were treated and released.
Christensen said wide receiver Christian Morgan, 18, of Aurora had surgery on his elbow and could be released today.
The Colorado Highway Patrol said the accident occurred about 5:30 a.m. Monday when the pickup the players were in drifted off U.S. 287 south of the Wyoming state line and crashed.
Narcisse was a passenger in the back seat of a vehicle driven by freshman cornerback Trey Fox, 19, of Glenwood Springs, the patrol said. Another passenger was redshirt freshman linebacker J.J. Quinlan, 19, of Everett, Wash.
Police said it appeared Fox fell asleep and that alcohol and drugs weren’t factors.
Christensen said the team plans to wear a decal with Narcisse’s initials and he hoped his team would pull closer together because of the tragedy.
