Harrowing new details have emerged regarding the death of UNLV football player Ben Christman, who passed away on February 11 at the age of 21.
Christman’s obituary had previously said the offensive lineman died of natural causes.
But a new report from TMZ provides more information around his passing, as police documents obtained by the outlet say he experienced chest pains during practice the day before his death.
An individual told Las Vegas Metropolitan Police that Christman had an EKG conducted on him by a coach on February 10 after experiencing chest pains, with a cardio doctor subsequently reviewing the tests and not finding anything alarming.
Following that practice, Christman reportedly returned home at around 3pm and went straight into his room after briefly greeting his roommate.
The next day, according to police documents, Christman was found by a teammate lying on his back, foaming at the mouth and with purple fingers.
UNLV offensive lineman Ben Christman died on Tuesday at age 21 in his Las Vegas apartment
Christman began his college career at Ohio State, playing two seasons for the Buckeyes
A police officer reportedly arrived at the scene on the morning of February 11 following a 911 call, and determined that Christman had been deceased for ‘a few hours’ due to the color of his right arm. The person who placed the 911 call and another teammate were administering CPR when the officer arrived.
Christman had missed practice that morning, leading his teammates to check on him. The aforementioned roommate told cops that he had not seen Christman since he went into his room following the previous day’s practice.
The school announced the player’s death last week and issued an emotional statement memorializing him.
‘Our team’s heart is broken to hear of Ben’s passing,’ new Rebels head coach Dan Mullen said in a press release. ‘Since the day Ben set foot on our campus a month ago, he made the Rebels a better program. Ben was an easy choice for our Leadership Committee as he had earned the immediate respect, admiration and friendship of all his teammates.’
‘Our prayers go out to his family and all who knew him. Ben made the world a better place and he will be missed.’
Christman had transferred to UNLV last month after two seasons at Kentucky . Before that, he was a four-star recruit out of high school and played for two years at Ohio State.
The 6-foot-6, 325-pound Christman was entering his final season of college eligibility.
