UConn coach: 2 teammates were with player stabbed outside dance; 1 gave victim first aid

UConn coach: 2 teammates with player when stabbed

STORRS, Conn. — The football coach at the University of Connecticut says at least two teammates were with a UConn player when he was fatally stabbed outside a school-sanctioned dance over the weekend.

Coach Randy Edsall said Monday that one of the teammates held 20-year-old Jasper Howard in his arms, and the other provided first aid. Edsall would not identify the players but said they may not be mentally ready to play when UConn has its next game Saturday against West Virginia.

Edsall would not say how many players attended the dance or saw the attack. UConn police say Howard, of Miami, was stabbed early Sunday during a fight between two groups that included students and non-students. There are no suspects and no arrests.

The violence came less than 12 hours after UConn’s 38-25 homecoming victory over Louisville.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP’s earlier story is below.

STORRS, Conn. (AP) — An autopsy shows a University of Connecticut football player was killed by a single stab wound to his abdomen, and the state medical examiner’s office has ruled his death a homicide.

The medical examiner’s office released its findings Monday.

Jasper Howard and another male student were stabbed outside the UConn Student Union early Sunday morning, after a pulled fire alarm forced an evacuation during a university-sponsored dance. The other student, who has not been identified, has been released from a local hospital.

UConn police Maj. Ronald Blicher (BLICK’-er) said Monday that no arrests have been made and authorities have no suspects.

Blicher says the stabbings stemmed from a dispute between two groups of people, including some who were not students.