Stonehill College Football Coach Offers Prayers, Sympathy To Henry Family

Stonehill football head coach Robert Talley released a statement Tuesday regarding the shooting of Pace University football player Danroy "DJ" Henry and Stonehill running back and Easton native Brandon Cox.

The Easton natives, who were Oliver Ames  teammates, were both shot by police outside Finnegan's Bar and Grille early Sunday morning in Thornwood, N.Y. Henry was killed in the incident and Cox suffered a gun wound to the arm and has since been released from the hospital.

Cox stayed over to visit Henry for the night after Stonehill beat Pace Saturday afternoon, 27-0.

In his statement, Talley said, "I would like to start by saying my deepest sympathies and prayers go out to the Henry family, the Pace University football program and the entire Pace University community.  With one of our football players involved, it has a big effect on the entire program.

"The first thing we want to make sure we do as a team is to support Brandon Cox and his family in whatever way they need us to. Brandon is a soft spoken young man that is extremely well liked by his peers and always seems to have a smile on his face.  He takes pride in being responsible and his commitment to his teammates is immeasurable.  He is a hard worker who has shown improvement every year.

"The team is handling the whole situation pretty well; they have done a great job reaching out to Brandon giving him words of encouragement and support.  We have talked about looking at this situation to reinforce how lucky we are to be able to play this great game of football and how fortunate we are to have a team that cares about one another.  Going forward, we are just taking one day at a time, appreciating the opportunities we have in front us and trying to make the most of them."

Stonehill sports information director Doug Monson said Stonehill had not decided if any kind of ceremony or recognition of the incident would be held when Stonehill takes on Southern Connecticut State University Saturday.

Pace University cancelled its upcoming game at Bentley University, according to Pace spokesman Christopher Corey.