ByLyndsey Gough|March 7, 2021 at 11:24 PM EST - Updated March 7 at 11:59 PM
BLUFFTON, S.C. (WTOC) - Sports have a powerful way of bringing people together during tough times, and according to loved ones, D’won “DJ” Fields, Jr. loved sports.
He was a football player, a manager for the basketball team and a big Philadelphia Eagles fan. Coaches and athletes from across the Lowcountry put rivalries aside and came together to pay their respects this afternoon.
“I told DJ as we walked off this field Friday from weightlifting, I said, ‘I love you son.’ He said, ‘I love you too, Coach. I’m going to work tomorrow. See you on Monday.’ I’ll never forget it,” said John Houpt, head coach of the Bluffton High School football team.
“This is what DJ wants. You pull for your team. You want your team to win. You want a team to beat the rival team, but you come and support the other team when you’re not playing them, and that’s what Bluffton is. That is Bluffton strong. That is the heart that we carry,” said Lisa Sulka, mayor of Bluffton.
“It started right here on this field. It just started from childhood, man, and that bond just continued to grow, just continued to grow. DJ just meant a lot to us. He meant a lot to all of us,” said Kenton Frazier, a Bluffton High School basketball player.
“DJ was an incredible kid, and his legacy will always be remembered for what an outstanding, fine young man he was off the field, as well as being a great player on the field,” said B. J. Payne, head coach of Hilton Head Island High School’s football team.
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