Missing NFL Players "Freaked Out"

The lone survivor says both men took off their life vests. One threw punches, then dove down and never resurfaced. The other saw land and decided to swim for it.

By: Jamie Burch | WKRG-TV
Published: March 16, 2009

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TAMPA, Fla. (AP) - Records from the search for two missing NFL
players and two friends paint a bleak picture of what happened
after their boat overturned off Tampa, Fla.
According to documents obtained by The Associated Press, lone
survivor Nick Schuyler told the Coast Guard one man
"freaked out" and took off his life vest Feb. 28, the night the
boat capsized.
Later that night, another became unruly and threw punches. He
took off his life vest, dove down and never resurfaced. A third
thought he saw land and decided to swim.
The men's names were redacted in the report.
Oakland Raiders linebacker Marquis Cooper, free-agent NFL
defensive lineman Corey Smith and former University of South
Florida players Schuyler and William Bleakley were aboard the
21-foot boat.

(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)