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Unanswered Questions Remain in Death of Teen Football Player

The community of Spring Valley, Illinois continues to mourn the death of a 17-year-old football player after he collapsed and later died.  Along with his death ...

The community of Spring Valley, Illinois continues to mourn the death of a 17-year-old football player after he collapsed and later died. 

Along with his death comes plenty of questions - most importantly why Daniel Lule died.

"He did all the right things, and he was ready, and that makes it hard to understand and accept really," says Hall Superintendent Mike Struna.

Mike Struna, Superintendent of Hall Schools said Lule was a quiet leader, who was likely going to be a starting offensive lineman this fall.

Lule was said to be in excellent shape, the weather was cool, and the team was less than a half-hour in to practice when he collapsed.

Struna says it’s not easy not knowing why, but right now the school is focusing the needs of Lule’s teammates and fellow students.

"Obviously football isn't the issue here right now. He was a good friend to a lot of the students and well respected by the staff," says Struna.

Many athletes at Hall High School play many different sports, but for Daniel his passion was football.

All practices at Hall High School have been cancelled giving this community time to grieve.

"Football was his love and one of the assistant coaches told the team last night Daniel was a football player and he wanted to play football. We're moving ahead and we'll play football when we're ready to play football. There's really no logical explanation, it's just a sad tragic time," says Struna.

Struna said Lule's death happened on the first official day of practice, although Lule had taken part in a number of drills last month in much warmer weather. An autopsy was scheduled for Friday and funeral arrangements are pending.

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