A Fourth Virginia Football Player Shot Is Recovering - Mike Hollins Is From Louisiana

LSU football coach Brian Kelly said Monday that his players know some of the University of Virginia football players going through a terrible tragedy.

One of the players shot Sunday on the Charlottesville campus is from Baton Rouge - running back Mike Hollins, a junior from University High on the LSU campus. Hollins had surgery for two gun shot wounds on Monday and is doing well, former University High (UHS) coach Chad Mahaffey told reporters on Monday.

Three other Virginia players shot Sunday after 10:15 p.m. at a parking garage died. Those were D'Sean Perry, a junior linebacker from Miami, Lavel Davis Jr., a junior wide receiver from Dorchester, S.C., and Devin Chandler, a junior wide receiver from Huntersville, N.C. They were returning from a field trip with other students.

Former Virginia football player Christopher Darnell Jones (center), a suspect in the murder of 3 University of Virginia football players Sunday, was apprehended on Monday. Wide receiver Devin Chandler (left) and wide receiver Lavel Davis Jr. (right) and linebacker D'Sean Perry (not pictured) were shot to death on Sunday on campus. (Photos courtesy of UVA Football.)

Suspect Christopher Darnell Jones, a 22-year-old former Virginia running back on the 2018 team, was apprehended Monday. Jones went to Petersburg High School in Petersburg, Virginia.

Some LSU Players Knew The Fallen Virginia Players

"Certainly a very tragic day in Charlottesville," Kelly said to open his weekly press conference on Monday. "And our thoughts and prayers are with the fooball players at Virginia who were victims of a shooting on their campus. It's tragic. Our hearts go out to them, the football program, the University. It's just senseless violence. You know, college campuses should be a place where it's violent free. What happened yesterday is certainly heart breaking, and we certainly pray for all those involved."

Kelly said some of his LSU players knew the victims.

"Certainly hits close to home as well, having players that actually had relationships with players on the team," Kelly said. "Again, thoughts and prayers with everybody involved, and we will certainly keep an eye on this matter."

In nine games this season, Hollins has gained 215 yards on 53 carries with two touchdowns for the Cavaliers (3-7). He rushed eight times for 23 yards and caught three passes for 22 yards in a 37-7 loss to Pittsburgh on Saturday.

Mike Hollins Won 2 State Titles At U-High On LSU Campus

Hollins was part of two state championship teams at U-High, which plays its games blocks from Tiger Stadium. He signed in Virginia's 2019 recruiting class as the No. 50 running back in the nation and No. 25 overall prospect in Louisiana. Hollins won the Warrick Dunn (former Florida State star tailback from Baton Rouge) Award in 2018 as presented by WAFB Channel 9 television in Baton Rouge.

He played in 13 games as a true freshman in 2019, gaining 112 yards on 21 carries with three touchdowns. After not playing in 2020, Hollins gained 213 yards on 49 carries with two touchdowns in nine games in 2021. Hollins has played in nine games this season for the Cavaliers (3-7) and has 215 yards on 53 rushes with two touchdowns.

Virginia has two other players from the Baton Rouge area - sophomore linebacker Jonathan Horton of Baton Rouge and junior wide receiver Dontayvion Wicks of Plaquemine. The Cavaliers have two players from New Orleans - senior wide receiver Keytaon Thompson and sophomore defensive back Donovan Johnson.