New scholarship honors coach killed in Apalachee HS shooting

New scholarship honors Apalachee HS coach

A new scholarship has been created in memory of Apalachee High School assistant football coach and math teacher Richard "Ricky" Aspinwall, one of four people killed in a tragic shooting last year.

GWINNETT COUNTY, Ga. - A new scholarship has been created in memory of Apalachee High School assistant football coach and math teacher Richard "Ricky" Aspinwall, one of four people killed in a tragic shooting last year.

RELATED: Apalachee Wildcats Coach Richard Aspinwall remembered by players as 'like family'

Richard "Ricky" Aspinwall. Supplied photo. 

What we know:

The endowed scholarship was established by Derek Tiller and his wife, Sarah, according to Gwinnett Daily Post. 

Tiller, a former Gwinnett County high school football coach, was a close friend of Aspinwall. The scholarship fund has been set up at Wofford College, where Tiller once played football.

The scholarship is specifically intended for a high school senior offensive lineman who plans to play football at Wofford, offering support to student-athletes who embody the spirit and dedication Aspinwall brought to the game.

What they're saying:

FOX 5 Atlanta spoke to Tiller about why he is organizing a scholarship.

"I just want to give back and show the tremendous appreciation for people that invested in me during my time there as well as being able to keep Ricky's name alive," Derek Tiller said. 

"He was a tremendous football coach, but I tell people that's not why everybody loved him. Everybody loved him because he was a selfless individual that wanted to do everything he could to make the program better and do what he could to help kids. And he lived that out every day and because of that, I want to make sure to keep that alive and people know what a great person he really was."

"We've endowed the scholarship specifically for an offensive lineman. I played offensive line at Wofford College...we tried to specifically earmark it for a player from the state of GA," Tiller explained. 

"The recipient of our scholarship… we want to make sure that they know Ricky's story and they know what kind of individual he was. I plan on providing information for each scholarship we have. They're going to know Ricky's story for sure. They're going to know what kind of impact he had and why we wanted to establish it in his name."

The backstory:

Four people – two students and two teachers – were killed last September at Apalachee High School in Barrow County. The accused killer was a 14-year-old student, Colt Gray, at the school. He was arrested after the shooting. His father, Colin Gray, was also arrested for buying the gun used in the shooting despite knowing his son was a possible danger to others and had a fascination to school shooters.

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More Information:

For more information on the scholarship, email Derek Tiller at [email protected].

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