Ex-Michigan State Punter Michael Sadler Killed in Accident

Tributes are pouring in on social media to Michael Sadler, 24, one of Michigan State University’s all-time best punters, who was among two people killed in a one-car accident in Wisconsin just before midnight Saturday in Waukesha County, WI. A third person was injure

Speed appeared to have been a factor when Sadler, of Grand Rapids, lost control of his vehicle on wet pavement, left the roadway and struck a tree, according to a press release. Sadler and a passenger, Samuel N. Foltz, 22, of Grand Island, NE, were pronounced dead at the scene. Foltz was a senior at the University of Nebraska, and the Cornhuskers’ senior punter.

A second passenger, Colby J. Delahoussaye, 21, of New Iberia, LA, was taken to a local hospital for treatment of “unspecified minor injuries,” according to a post on the athletics website for Louisiana State University, where Delahoussaye is a senior kicker.

The victims were student instructors for the Kohl's Kicking Camp at Kettle Moraine High School in Wales.

“We mourn today with the Foltz and Sadler families. We mourn today with the football programs of Nebraska and Michigan State. We mourn today with all of the people who were better men and women for knowing Sam and Mike. Our thoughts and prayers are with them,” Jamie Kohl, Kohl's Kicking Camp director said in a statement on Sunday.

The spokeswoman for the sheriff’s office in Waukesha County said neither alcohol nor drugs were involved, according to the Lansing State Journal.

Michigan State football coach Mark Dantonio confirmed Sadler’s death on Twitter Sunday afternoon: “He gave us all so much in so little time. Our thoughts & prayers are with him & his family. #RIPMikeSadler.”

In a statement later, Dantonio said: “The world has lost a rising star who dreamed big and was accomplishing those dreams, one after another. He was one of those people that brightened your day. I always say to try and be a light, and he truly was a light in this world. We will all miss him dearly. Once again, we find out that life is so fragile. The world will be a sadder and lonelier place without Mike Sadler in it. May he rest in peace.”

Former teammate Travis Jackson told the Lansing newspaper that Sadler had a gift for “making people feel special, even if it was a short 30-second conversation or one over an hour.”

“He was one of those guys that could've been a doctor, a lawyer, a politician. I even thought he could be a president one day.”

Mourning former teammates, friends and fans took to social media to express their grief.

The starting punter for Michigan State from 2011-2014, he was the Spartans’ first four-time Academic All-American, a finalist for the William V. Campbell Trophy for the country’s top scholar-athlete, and planned to start Stanford Law School in the fall.