MARIANNA, Fla. (WTXL) -- More than 200 Marianna high school students, parents and friends celebrated Herman Williams life at Marianna High School Tuesday evening. The Bulldogs basketball player was scheduled to attend the University of Louisiana at Lafayette to play basketball, but he collapsed and died during a pickup basketball game on Monday.
Fighting away tears, Herman's friends, classmates, and administrators came to the front of the vigil one-by-one reflecting on his short but impactful life.
"He was an all all-around great person and he was a great brother to me," his teammate Jaeden Harley said. "He taught me a lot of stuff and I learned alot from him."
His teammates were just coming back from a basketball tournament. They voted to play their two scheduled games on Tuesday because they said that's what Herman would do.
"Herman would love for me to grind," his teammate Nicholas Pollochs said. "Just got to finish what we started. He would love for me to keep doing what he really loved.
Current Marianna boys basketball coach Matt Anderson said Herman was a team player that was willing to do whatever it took to win. His former coach Travis Blanton missed coaching him this season. Blanton coached at Marianna for 15 seasons.
"Herman was just a very special person," Blanton said. "He was a great athlete, but he was a greater person than he was anything else. He had a true appreciation of those who did for him and he tried to give back in any way he could. He was a very special young man that this community is mourning about because he was so special. We wanted to keep him around and be able to watch him play."
Family and friends at the vigil said moving on knowing Herman died at just 19 years old was not easy, but they tried to encourage each other.
"We need to mourn," Blanton said. "The family, the kids and the community does. That's part of the healing process. Along with that, a whole lot of prayer, belief and faith."
Williams' funeral is set for Saturday at the Marianna High School gymnasium. Visitation starts at noon central time, with the funeral following at 2:00/CT.
