Collision on Sidelines of Football Game Kills Retired Teacher

Traumatic brain injury claims math teacher of 31 years
By Elizabeth Armstrong Moore,  Newser Staff
Posted Oct 12, 2016 12:35 PM CDT
Collision on Sidelines of Football Game Kills Retired Teacher
A beloved high school teacher was fatally injured at a football game.   (AP Photo/Gregory Payan)

Over the course of 31 years, Scranton Prep math teacher Tony Cantafio became known as "Taps" for his devoted work on the sidelines of football, baseball, and basketball games keeping score and stats for the players. Perhaps he died doing what he loved, then, as he suffered a traumatic brain injury on Sept. 30 when a football player ran into him on the sidelines during a game and knocked him to the ground, reports CBS News. The Pennsylvania school's principal wrote in an email to parents that Cantafio died Monday, 10 days later.

"When we had an away game, Taps was sitting in the office, talking with the kids, got with the kids right on the bus and when the game was over he gave all the stats on the way home," retired football coach Nick Donato tells the Scranton Times-Tribune. Cantafio, who was 67, had just retired last year but decided to continue his work keeping statistics at high school games. He was a husband and father of two. (Several high school football players died last season alone.)

Get the news faster.
Tap to install our app.
X
Install the Newser News app
in two easy steps:
1. Tap in your navigation bar.
2. Tap to Add to Home Screen.

X