Alabama Football Family Mourns the Loss of Former Tide RB Altee Tenpenny

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — The University of Alabama football team was stunned by the news that former Crimson Tide running back Altee Tenpenny had died in a car accident. 

Luke Matheson of ArkansasVarsity.com broke the news late Tuesday night, and AL.com confirmed it with Mississippi Highway Patrol early Wednesday morning.

"Our thoughts and prayers are with Altee and his family," coach Nick Saban said during the weekly SEC teleconference with reporters. "This is obviously a tragedy. This is a guy who was in our program and was good friends with a lot of our players. We want to be as supportive as possible to all the people who were affected by this."

Numerous Alabama players took to Twitter to express their grief:

Senior running back Kenyan Drake also posted a lengthy statement with a photo on Instagram that included: "The tears never stopped since I heard the news."

Former Crimson Tide players chimed in as well: 

Tenpenny was part of Alabama’s illustrious 2013 recruiting class, which was expected to restock the backfield with Derrick Henry, Alvin Kamara, Tyren Jones and Tenpenny.

All were considered to be at least 4-star products by 247Sports, with Tenpenny, who was recruited out of North Little Rock High School in Arkansas, rated as the No. 5 running back in the nation and No. 51 overall prospect.

Only Henry remains on the Crimson Tide roster. He’ll be on the opposite sideline of Kamara when Alabama hosts Tennessee this Saturday.

In two seasons at Alabama, Tenpenny had 218 rushing yards and one touchdown on 48 carries. He left the Crimson Tide after the end of the 2014-15 season and announced his decision to transfer to UNLV in May, but was dismissed by coach Tony Sanchez in August.

Tenpenny subsequently enrolled at Nicholls State. However, according to the Thibodaux Daily Comet, he was arrested Sunday morning for possession of a firearm and discharging a weapon.

Nicholls State subsequently announced that Tenpenny has been suspended indefinitely. Earlier Tuesday, coach Tim Rebowe said during his weekly press conference that the running back was not expected to be back.  

Timothy D. Easley/Associated Press

“On behalf of the players, coaches, and all of us at the University, we are extremely saddened by the news of the passing of Altee Tenpenny,” Rebowe said in a statement Wednesday. “We extend our condolences to his friends, family and former teammates.”

Tenpenny was heading back home to Arkansas when his car collided with a highway sign in Glen Allan, Miss., which is 170 miles southeast of his hometown of North Little Rock. The accident occurred at approximately 5 p.m.

He was 20 years old.  

“The entire Nicholls community is deeply saddened by the news of Altee Tenpenny’s tragic passing,” Nicholls President Bruce Murphy said in the same release. “Our heartfelt sympathies go out to his family, friends and many fans.”

Dave Martin/Associated Press

This is the second time in recent memory that Alabama players have had to deal with the death of a former teammate, as offensive tackle Aaron Douglas died from a drug overdose at a house party in Florida on May 12, 2011—less than a month after the tornado that ripped through Tuscaloosa.

The 21-year-old had participated in spring practices after transferring from Arizona Western College and initially playing at Tennessee.

"We do everything we can to support the players in every way," Saban said. "We do have counseling programs and we do have counselors, sports psychologists and psychiatrists we use to try and help the players any way that we can."

Quotes were obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted.

Christopher Walsh is a lead SEC college football writer. Follow Christopher on Twitter @WritingWalsh.