South Atlanta News

The Apalachee High School football team attended the Atlanta Falcons practice on Friday in Flowery Branch, Georgia. The student athletes observed from the sidelines as the Falcons prepared for their Week 2 game against the Philadelphia Eagles.

This visit occurred a week and a day after a tragic shooting at Apalachee High School in Winder, Georgia. The incident resulted in the deaths of two students, Mason Schermerhorn and Christian Angulo, both 14 years old, and two teachers, Richard Aspinwall and Christina Irimie. Nine others were hospitalized. Aspinwall was an assistant football coach at the high school.

In response to the tragedy, during their Week 1 opener against the Pittsburgh Steelers, the Falcons wore Apalachee High School t-shirts during pregame warm-ups. Mercedes-Benz Stadium also held a moment of silence to honor those affected by the shooting.

Apalachee High School is located approximately 20 miles from the Falcons' training facility and about 45 miles from Mercedes-Benz Stadium.

"I can't imagine being that age and having to go through something like that where possibly your teacher, your coach, your fellow classmates are no longer here because of such a violent act," said defensive coordinator Jimmy Lake during his Friday press conference.

Assistant head coach/defense Jerry Gray commented on the high school team's attendance at practice. "They have to go back to the school where everything happened," Gray explained. "To give them a little relief, and you get the chance to love on them a little bit, it is special for our guys. We're NFL guys but we still understand what caring means."

Falcons inside linebacker Lorenzo Carter recalled learning about the school shooting while in the locker room last week. "When it happened, we were all in (the locker room), seeing things on news reports and just trying to understand what was going on," Carter said Friday. "Once we figured out what was going on it was a little scary just because, I mean, it hit so close to home. I live in Winder. So that's my city."

Carter emphasized that it is crucial for the Falcons to continue supporting the community beyond the immediate aftermath of the tragedy. "Once the spotlight leaves, those kids will still be going through their scars and still have to relive that day," Carter said. "The more we can do, the more consistent we can stay there and keep giving them mentors, counselors and support; that's what's really going to matter."

Editor's note: Amna Subhan and Tori McElhaney contributed reporting to this story.