South Carolina Honors Tyler Hilinski, Brother of Gamecocks QB
South Carolina fans honored late Washington State quarterback Tyler Hilinski during Saturday's game against Alabama at Williams-Brice Stadium.
Fans held up three fingers in honor of Hilinski's No. 3 jersey number at the start of the third quarter. His brother, Ryan Hilinski, plays quarterback for the Gamecocks and wears the same number. Hilinski is a true freshman who recently earned the starting job after Jake Bentley went down with injury.
Tyler died by suicide in January 2018, and doctors diagnosed him with Stage 1 CTE after his death. Sports Illustrated's Greg Bishop chronicled the Hilinski family’s search for answers in the aftermath of the tragedy. SI TV also produced a documentary on the family's journey after losing Tyler.
On Saturday, E:60 aired a feature about the Hilinski brothers' bond over football and why Ryan decided to wear No. 3 at South Carolina.
"I know that it's just a jersey number of course, but I'm wearing Tyler on my jersey. I'm wearing it for all the people that are going through things in their lives," Ryan said.