Coach and Six College Golfers Die in Texas Bus Wreck


Officials from New Mexico’s Christian university said on Wednesday that seven people from Southwestern University died after the men’s and women’s golf teams were involved in a fatal accident in Texas on Tuesday night.

“The USW campus community is shocked and saddened as we mourn members of our college family today,” the university said in a statement, noting that the two passengers were in critical condition and receiving treatment in Lubbock, Texas.

Although the university did not identify any of the victims by name, it said the golf coach was among those killed in the wreckage. A spokesperson for the university in Hobbs, NM, said the only people on the bus were golf coach, Tyler James, and students.

The Texas Department of Public Safety, which investigated the wreck, did not immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday. But a spokesperson, Sergeant. Steven Blanco told local news sources that the other vehicle involved in the accident was a pickup truck and at least one person in the truck was killed.

“A very tragic scene” the sergeant told KWES-TV Tuesday night near the crash site. “This is very, very tragic.”

The golf teams had traveled to Texas, where most of their players went to high school, to compete in a varsity tournament in Midland. The accident occurred in nearby Andrews County.

James was new to non-denominational religious college, was hired as a coach last summer after working at other Christian universities and a high school 120 miles southwest of Fort Worth.

Competing in the National Intercollegiate Athletic Association, the USW sports program is part of the undergraduate experience for most students, according to federal records. It generated approximately $3.5 million in revenue between July 2019 and June 2020 and recorded much more than that in expenses.



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