Northern Iowa football player Parker Sutherland dies: ‘We are devastated’

Northern Iowa freshman football player Parker Sutherland died Saturday morning, the university announced. Sutherland was 18 years old.

“I’m heartbroken,” UNI coach Todd Stepsis said in a statement. “No words can express my condolences to (Sutherland’s family) Adam, Jill and Georgia.”

It’s unclear how Sutherland died, and the university declined to release details. At 5:12 p.m. Thursday, the Cedar Falls public safety, fire and emergency medical services were called to the football complex, according to their call log. The reason was classified as “unconscious/fainting/non trauma.”

Sutherland, a 6-foot-6 tight end, played in four games as a true freshman last fall for the Panthers. He was a three-sport athlete at City High School in Iowa City, Iowa, where he was named second-team all-state in 2024.

“We are devastated — just devastated,” UNI athletic director Megan Franklin said in a statement.

UNI mourns the passing of football student-athlete Parker Sutherland

📰 https://t.co/e2ATEa5haG#EverLoyal | #1UNI pic.twitter.com/nMwwcje9eu

— UNI Football (@UNIFootball) February 14, 2026

Sutherland’s death marks the second recent tragedy impacting college athletics in Iowa. On Wednesday, Iowa Lakes Community College baseball player Carter “Tater” Johnson, 19, was killed and 32 other players and staff members were injured when their team bus veered off a two-lane highway in north-central Iowa. Johnson, who was from Rapid City, S.D., died at the scene after the bus flipped on its side.