High school football player dies after collapsing on the field during a game

PANAMA CITY, Fla. (WJHG/WECP/Gray News) – The school community and football family at Port St. Joe High School in Florida are in shock and mourning the loss of star athlete Chance Gainer.

The 18-year-old star student and football player collapsed on the field on Friday night while his team was playing an away game against Liberty County High School.

Gainer was treated immediately on the field. Gulf County Schools Superintendent Jim Norton said he didn't have a pulse when paramedics reached him, but they were able to feel one before Gainer was taken to the ambulance.

Gainer was subsequently taken to a hospital in Blountstown, where he was pronounced dead, according to Norton.

Norton said everyone associated with Port St. Joe High School and the Tiger Sharks football program is devastated by Gainer's death.

Gainer was an athlete who “possessed world-class speed, but more importantly, he had a world-class personality,” Norton said.

The district manager added that Gainer, who had a grade point average above 4.0, had recently visited Vanderbilt University to discuss the possibility of studying there.

Norton said he is in the process of arranging grief counselors to come to the school to help the football players and all Port St. Joe students, teachers and staff deal with the tragic situation.

The game against Blountstown scheduled for next Friday has already been postponed, Norton said.

Copyright 2024 WJHG via Gray Local Media, Inc. All rights reserved.