A former wide receiver at Jacksonville University, 27-year-old Rodney Sumter was among the shooting victims at Pulse nightclub in Orlando early Sunday morning where approximately 49 people were killed and more than 50 injured.
According to Action News Jax, Sumter was shot in the arms and back while running away from the club and was scheduled to undergo surgery on Monday morning. Sumter's mother Lenita gave the following statement to Action News Jax:
"I'm humbly grateful to God for commanding another morning on behalf of Rodney and the other surviving victims. My prayers go out to the families of the deceased and pray that God will encamp His angels around them to comfort them in this tragic time of grief. My son is prepping for surgery right now. Pray our strength."
Sumter played for the Jacksonville University Dolphins (FCS) from 2008 to 2010. In 2010, Sumter caught 23 passes for 456 yards and seven touchdowns.
The father of two identifies himself on Instagram as a former collegiate track/football athlete, model, dancer and bartender based in Orlando.
It turns out one of the other survivors, Joshua McGill, gave Sumter the shirt off his back and may have saved Sumter's life. McGill told FOX News that he he used the shirt to stop the bleeding:
"I noticed he had been shot once in each arm... I took my shirt off, tied it around his first initial gunshot wound on his left arm. I took his shirt off, tied it around his other arm where the other gunshot wound was."
As the two of them raced through a parking lot to find medical help, McGill said he noticed the man had suffered a third gunshot wound, this one in the back. "I just applied as much pressure as I could."
Sumter is expected to go into recovery for two hours after the surgery.
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