May 28, 2007

NEW ORLEANS (AP) -- U.S. Coast Guard rescue crews continued searching Lake Pontchartrain on Monday for New England Patriots defensive end Marquise Hill, who was reported missing following a jetski accident.

"We searched throughout the night," said Petty Officer Tom Atkeson.

Hill's agent, Albert Elias, said he had been told Hill and a young woman were jetskiing Sunday in the lake when both of them went into the water, which had a strong current. Elias said the woman was able to make it to a pylon and hang on until she was rescued, while Hill was last scene floating away from the scene.

"I'm an optimistic guy," Elias told WWL Radio in New Orleans. "He's a strong kid and a fighter."

Hill played on LSU's 2004 national championship team and was drafted in the second round by New England.

The Coast Guard was using both boats and a helicopter search the shoreline, Atkeson said. Wildlife and Fisheries was using a recovery line that drags the bottom of the water.

A call came in around 9:30 p.m. Sunday, Atkeson said. The woman, whose identity was not available Monday morning, was rescued and sent to Tulane Medical Center where she told them Hill had tried to keep her calm even as the two were drifting away from each other.

Neither Hill nor the woman wore a life preserver, Atkeson said.

"It's so important to have a life jacket and a signaling device," Atkeson said. "One keeps you afloat and the other helps us find you."

Elias said Hill has spent much of his time since Hurricane Katrina helping family members rebuild their homes.

By MARY FOSTER, AP Sports Writer
May 29, 2007

AP - May 29, 12:55 pm EDT
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NEW ORLEANS (AP) -- The death of New England Patriots defensive end Marquise Hill, who fell off a jet ski in Lake Pontchartrain, was ruled an accidental drowning on Tuesday.

An autopsy found no signs of drug or alcohol in Hill's body, although more tests are planned and will take two weeks to complete, said Orleans Parish coroner Dr. Frank Minyard.

Minyard said Hill might have suffered a mild concussion when he fell off the water craft.

"He might of hit the right side of his face above the eye when he fell off the craft," Minyard said. "He had a pretty nasty bruise there."

There was a slight amount of blood in the brain, which could indicate a concussion, Minyard said.

"That could have caused him some confusion," Minyard said. "Although we were told he talked to the woman who was with him after the accident, he could have become disoriented."

Hill played on LSU's national championship team and was a second-round draft pick by New England in 2004. He had yet to start for the Patriots, playing in 13 games in his NFL career.

Hill and a female friend had ventured onto the lake Sunday night near the south shore. Investigators said neither was wearing a life vest. Authorities said they ended up in an area of swirling currents near where a shipping canal runs into the lake.

"The water goes through there very fast and it's very deep -- 70, 80, 90 feet deep," said Minyard, who fishes in the area.

While the woman survived by clinging to a pylon until she was rescued, the 24-year-old Hill, who friends described as a good swimmer, drifted away and disappeared. Searchers pulled his body from the water on Monday afternoon.

"There were currents and very choppy waves," said Capt. Brian Clark of the Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries Department, who took part in the search. "That might have caused the accident, you have to know what you're doing in those conditions or you'll have trouble."

Hill was described by friends as a strong swimmer who included laps in his training routine. But the water conditions may have nullified his skill, Clark said.

State regulations require anyone riding the popular speedy water craft to wear a life jacket and be off the water a half hour before sunset, said Coast Guard officer Aldo Portillo.

Hill and his companion set out about 8:30 p.m. Sunday. Sunset was at 7:53 p.m., the Coast Guard said.

Hill's agent, Albert Elias, said the player spent much of his time since Hurricane Katrina helping rebuild the homes of family members including his mother, Sherry, and the mother of his 2-year-old son.

"From what I hear, he's done a lot to help with things after Katrina, and I know he had a great passion for the city of New Orleans," said former LSU quarterback Matt Mauck, who was Hill's teammate at LSU. "Off field he was a really kind person, kind of like a gentle giant. And not only for LSU, but for New England and everyone who got a chance to meet him throughout his life, everyone has to be extremely saddened and disappointed to hear the news."

After heading to the NFL, Hill continued to do much of his offseason training at LSU's Baton Rouge campus, about 80 miles up the Mississippi River from New Orleans. He was known and admired by current Tigers players, university athletics spokesman Michael Bonnette said.

"His presence meant a lot for some of the younger guys. He gave them someone to look up to and he was always there for them," Bonnette said. "Here's a 6-foot-6, 300-pound guy, as intimidating as can be, and yet every time you approached him he always welcomed you with a big old smile.

"In between the lines, he had his game-face on, but outside the lines, in the community or in the weight room, he was always smiling and having a good time."

I was telling my wife a story yesterday about how I could have easily drowned in JetSki accident when I was 16.

I was on a waverunner, and took a turn hard where the thing skipped across the water a couple times, and one of the bounces just jammed my spine and the shock threw me off. It was like my whole back went "funny bone" on me, and for about 45 seconds, I couldn't move my arms and legs.

Except I was wearing a life jacket, so I just laid there prone in the water for a minute until I could swim back to my ride.

I can't understand why anyone would ride one of those things without a life vest. Some people just think they're invincible, I guess.