Florida State University linebacker Ethan Pritchard is heading to a rehabilitation facility in Jacksonville. The freshman was shot in the head in August in Havana while taking his aunt and a three-year-old home.
The shooting occurred following FSU’s first game of the season and Pritchard has been in intensive care at Tallahassee Memorial Hospital ever since. Four people have been arrested in the shooting.
Wednesday, FSU announced Pritchard was being released from TMH and taken to a rehabilitation facility in Jacksonville. The school says he’s “alert responsive and able to communicate.”
Pritchard's father, Ethan Pritchard, also expressed gratitude to the school, medical providers, FSU and others who have supported his son.
“I want to especially thank Dr. Albert Lee and his team, the ECMO team and the nurses on the third and fourth floors at TMH for the care and medical expertise they have provided Ethan. Coach Norvell has checked in every day and has been a constant presence visiting us here at the hospital, and his players and staff have continued to make us feel part of the team. I can’t fully express how much those moments have meant to me and Ethan. The Florida State Sports Medicine staff has provided consistent communication and collaboration with the wonderful doctors at TMH," he said.
"I can’t say enough about the support we have received from our hometown and all of Seminole County. Coach Karl Calhoun and Seminole High School have created a tremendous support system for me, and I’m truly thankful for the culture we’re part of. I also want to thank Gadsden County Sheriff Morris Young and the FDLE for their hard work and dedication to pursuing justice for Ethan. My heart is filled with gratitude for the outpouring of support for so many people, and I’m so appreciative for every single one of you. Ethan has a long journey ahead of him, but I know he will continue to fight and he will do so with the full support of our FSU and Seminole County families and all who have been impacted by his story.”
A video posted to social media shows Pritchard in a bed wheeled out of the hospital surrounded by his teammates and hospital staff clapping and cheering for him.
According to investigators, the shooters mistook the vehicle Pritchard was driving for the one they were targeting.
