Liberty freshman football player Tajh Boyd dies at 19 years old
Liberty freshman offensive lineman Tajh Boyd died, the team announced Sunday. He was 19 years old.
"It is with heavy hearts that we share the news of the loss of one of our student-athletes, Tajh Boyd," a team statement read. "We thank God for bringing Tajh into our Liberty Athletics community, and we will always remember him as a Flame. Tajh will be missed dearly."
The program did not announce a cause of death.
It is with heavy hearts that we share the news of the loss of one of our student-athletes, Tajh Boyd.
We thank God for bringing Tajh into our Liberty Athletics community and we will always remember him as a Flame. Tajh will be missed dearly.
🔗: https://t.co/2LSS6Uhe7dpic.twitter.com/ehQV0EZHtS— Liberty Flames (@LibertyFlames) August 6, 2023
Boyd played high school football at Oscar Smith High in Chesapeake, Virginia. He committed to Liberty as a three-star prospect in 2022 over offers from Maryland and Pittsburgh.
Per the Virginian-Pilot, Boyd was part of an Oscar Smith team that won back-to-back state championships during his sophomore and junior seasons. Rivals rated Boyd as the state's 28th-ranked player in his recruiting class. His high school coach, Chris Scott, remembered him fondly for his contributions on and off the field in a statement to the Virginian-Pilot.
“Tajh’s impact went far beyond statistics and accolades,” Scott said. “Yes, he was a formidable force on the football field, but it was his infectious smile, his positive energy and his ability to uplift others that truly made him larger than life.”
Per his Liberty bio, Boyd intended to major in interdisciplinary studies with the goal of becoming a computer science engineer.
Conference USA, which Liberty will join this upcoming season, released a statement Sunday mourning Boyd.
"We are deeply saddened to learn of the passing of @LibertyFootball student-athlete Tajh Boyd," the statement read. "Our thoughts are with the Boyd family and Flames nation during this difficult time."
