Northern Iowa’s Parker Sutherland dead at 18 after collapsing during workout

A college football player died Saturday after collapsing during a workout earlier in the week.

Tight end Parker Sutherland of the University of Northern Iowa was just 18 years old when he was working through a “normal” routine with his teammates and suddenly collapsed.

“I’m heartbroken …” Northern Iowa head coach Todd Stepsis said in a statement. “Parker embodied everything we look for in a UNI Football Panther. His talent and potential excited us on a daily basis, but it failed to compare to the type of person and teammate he was. His character, humility, toughness and genuine love of others are what champions are made of. While I’m saddened that our time together was short, we will celebrate the bright light that he brought to our football team for the rest of our lives.”

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“His character, humility, toughness and genuine love of others are what champions are made of,” coach Todd Stepsis said of Parker Sutherland. (IMAGN/University of Northern Iowa)

“He embraced the opportunity to play Panther football and represent the University through sport,” UNI Director of Athletics Megan Franklin added. “We are devastated — just devastated. The blessing is that we have a Panther family who will hold the Sutherland family, our football team, and our athletics staff close as we grieve.”

Stepsis said the team was working out Thursday morning when they got “through our warm-up and in a routine, normal Thursday, and he collapsed.”

“He’s one of one,” Stepsis said. “Just an amazing person, an amazing family. It’s the type of guy you want to build a team with. If I could have 110 Parkers, I would. We’re not going to be able to replace him, but who he is as a person, he always had a smile on his face. He always made people feel good about themselves. So for us, it’s not about replacing him but finding something extra inside that can help fill that gap and close that void with him being gone.”

Iowa City High’s Parker Sutherland celebrates a first down against Iowa City Liberty on Sept. 6, 2024. (Julia Hansen/Iowa City Press-Citizen/USA Today Network)

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“Our team, they understand that, and they recognize that, and they want to play for Parker. They want to live like Parker. They want to impact like he did.”

Sutherland, from Iowa City, played in four games in his freshman season after being a three-sport varsity athlete in high school.

His bio on Northern Iowa’s athletics page says he enjoyed “video games, watching movies, pickleball and Legos.”

A memorial was held for Sutherland on Monday outside the UNI Dome, with KWWL saying “hundreds” were in attendance.

Sutherland was a three-sport athlete in high school before attending UNI. (University of Northern Iowa)

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“I mean that poor kid, he didn’t even know how good-looking he was. He never did his hair. He wore black on black. It was just, ‘Hey, go back downstairs and change.’ ‘OK’ ‘Why?’ It didn’t phase him. He didn’t care. He didn’t care the littlest of anything. He didn’t care about what he wore, what he bought,” his father, Adam, said at the memorial. “All he wanted to do was eat and sleep, and hang out with the fellas. That’s it.

“And build Legos. Honestly.”

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