FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga — The Apalachee High School football team attended the Atlanta Falcons practice Friday.
The student athletes watched from the sideline as the professionals continued preparing for the Falcons' Week 2 game against the Philadelphia Eagles on Monday.
This meeting of teams came a week and a day after tragedy struck Apalachee High School.
Last Wednesday, there was a shooting at the local high school located in Winder, Georgia. Two students – 14-year-old Mason Schermerhorn and 14-year-old Christian Angulo — and two teachers — Richard Aspinwall and Christina Irimie — were killed. Nine others were hospitalized. Aspinwall was an assistant football coach, according to the high school's website.
The following Sunday, as Atlanta hosted the Pittsburgh Steelers for their Week 1 opener, the Falcons wore Apalachee High School t-shirts during pregame warm-ups. Mercedes-Benz Stadium then held a moment of silence in honor of the victims and those affected by the shooting.
Apalachee High School is about 20 miles from the Falcons' training facility and about 45 miles from the stadium.
"I can't imagine being that age and having to go through something like that where possibly your teacher, your coach, your fellow classmates are no longer here because of such a violent act," defensive coordinator Jimmy Lake said during his Friday press conference.
After Friday's practice, assistant head coach/defense Jerry Gray was asked about the high school team attending the session. He said that it was nice to be able to give the students and their coaches a moment away from the tragedy they are living through.
"They have to go back to the school where everything happened," Gray explained. "To give them a little relief, and you get the chance to love on them a little bit, it is special for our guys. We're NFL guys but we still understand what caring means."
In the locker room pre-practice, Falcons inside linebacker Lorenzo Carter recalled the moment the team found out about the school shooting last week.
"When it happened, we were all in (the locker room), seeing the things on the news reports and just trying to understand what was going on," Carter said Friday. "Once we figured out what was going on it was a little scary just because, I mean, it hit so close to home. I live in Winder. So, that's my city."
Carter said it is important that the Falcons continue to embrace the community beyond the initial wake of the tragedy.
"Once the spotlight leaves, those kids will still be going through their scars and still have to relive that day," Carter said. "The more we can do, the more consistent we can stay there and keep giving them mentors, counselors and support, that's what's really going to matter."
Editor's note: Amna Subhan and Tori McElhaney contributed reporting to this story.
