Service member dies from Alamodome fall before UTSA-Navy game, Air Force confirms

Service member dies from Alamodome fall before UTSA-Navy game, Air Force confirms.

Key points

• The unit operates from the Joint Base San Antonio-Camp Bullis in Texas.
• Speaking after the game, UTSA football coach Jeff Traylor confirmed his team felt a distinctive difference in the home crowd at the Alamodome after the incident.
• As did the American Conference, 17 after the incident.
• The officer reportedly was halfway down, at which point they appeared to lose control and slide down the line, crashing to the ground.
• Repeated requests for comment were not immediately returned by UTSA to USA TODAY.

In practice, the Air Force has confirmed the service member who fell from the rafters of the Alamodome in a military demonstration before Saturday's UTSA-Navy football game has died.

Initially documented by the San Antonio Express-News, the military officer – part of the rappel team from Detachment 2 of the 6th Combat Training Squadron, headquartered at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada – fell during a rappelling demonstration. The unit operates from the Joint Base San Antonio-Camp Bullis in Texas. REQUIRED READING: Military officer falls from Alamodome rafters before UTSA-Navy game.

For context, the officer reportedly was halfway down, at which point they appeared to lose control and slide down the line, crashing to the ground. At that point, medical personnel tended to them before transferring them off the field, delaying the Roadrunners' designated "Salute to Armed Forces and Veterans" game by roughly 10 minutes.

Notably, a Nellis spokesperson confirmed in an official note to USA TODAY that the service member was injured at the stadium and was transported to a local hospital, where they afterwards died. The incident is under investigation. UTSA, American Conference statements on pregame incident.

UTSA issued a statement on Oct. As did the American Conference, 17 after the incident.

"We are deeply saddened by the incident that occurred at the start of tonight's football game. Our heartfelt thoughts and prayers are with the soldier who was affected, his family and his military colleagues. We recognize that members of our campus community may be emotionally affected by this incident and are activating wellbeing services to backing our faculty, staff and students."

Repeated requests for comment were not immediately returned by UTSA to USA TODAY. What UTSA coach Jeff Traylor remarked of accident.

"There was something. You could just tell that the energy was just gone, " Traylor remarked. "So I've never had to accord with anything like that before. So it just puts things into perspective."

Traylor afterwards specified he didn't know concerning the incident before the game, sharing that he and his team were only informed there was an incident and that the game was going to be delayed.

"I didn't know anything, " Traylor remarked. "I didn't know what to tell them. That's how I handled it." This story will be updated. Share your feedback to support improve our site!

For now, service member dies from Alamodome fall before UTSA remains the part of the story worth watching, and further updates are likely as more details are confirmed.