Memphis football player fatally shot on campus, police say

MEMPHIS, Tenn. – A University of Memphis football player was fatally shot on campus in what police believe was a targeted attack, and classes were canceled Monday as a precaution.\nTaylor Bradford, 21, apparently was shot near a university housing complex at about 9:45 p.m. Sunday and then crashed a car he was driving into a tree a short distance away on campus, officials said.\n“We found him with a bullet wound to the body and the ambulance took him to the hospital where he was pronounced (dead),” said Roger Prewitt, a Memphis Police inspector.\nDetectives investigating the shooting received reports of gunfire being heard in a parking lot of the housing complex about 200 yards from where Bradford was found, police spokeswoman Monique Martin said.\nHomicide detectives were unsure of a motive for the shooting and had no suspects, she said. \n“That’s all still under investigation,” she said.\nUniversity president Shirley Raines said witnesses told police they saw more than one person leaving the scene who could have been involved.\n“This was an act directed specifically toward the victim, and it was not a random act of violence,” she said.\nResidence halls in the surrounding area were closed to outsiders immediately, and residents were advised not to go outside. Students, faculty and staff were told by e-mail early Monday morning that classes were canceled.\nIn an e-mail alert to faculty, staff and students at 3:40 a.m. Monday, officials wrote that “the initial investigation indicates this was an act directed specifically toward the victim and was not a random act of violence.”\nThe university decided to cancel classes Monday, although police believe the person or persons involved in the shooting left the campus immediately.\n“We feel like the campus is safe, but we’d rather err on the safety than not,” said Curt Guenther, director of communications services for the university.\nBradford, a 5-foot-11, 300-pound defensive lineman, was a junior who transferred to Memphis after two seasons at Samford University in Birmingham, Ala.\nThe Memphis Tigers host Marshall University on Tuesday night. A moment of silence is planned before the game.\n“Our entire football team is deeply saddened by the loss of Taylor,” head coach Tommy West said in a statement. “He was well-respected and a popular member of our team. Our thoughts and prayers go out to his family.”\nBradford, a resident of Nashville, Tenn., transferred to Memphis in 2006 and was on the roster for this season, but had not played in a game this season.\nBradford lettered in three sports at Antioch High School in Nashville, and held school records in shotput and discus.