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Two NFL players reporting missing after fishing trip

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schwab

schwab

Donkey Punch Ann Arbor
Lions DE Smith, Raiders LB Cooper reported missing on a fishing boat

Associated Press


CLEARWATER, Fla. -- Detroit Lions defensive end Corey Smith and Oakland Raiders linebacker Marquis Cooper were among four boaters missing Sunday off Florida's Gulf Coast, the Coast Guard and Smith's agent said.
Smith and Cooper were on a 21-foot vessel that left Clearwater Pass on Saturday morning for a fishing trip and didn't return as expected, the Coast Guard said Sunday. Crews used a helicopter and a 47-foot motor-life boat to search a 750-square mile area west of Clearwater Pass on Sunday.
Smith owned the boat, and he and Cooper had been on fishing trips before, said Ron Del Duca, Smith's agent. Smith and Cooper were teammates on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2004.
Smith, 29, had 30 tackles, including three sacks, and an interception in 12 games last season for the winless Lions. Smith, who is 6-foot-2 and 250 pounds, also played for the San Francisco 49ers and played college ball at North Carolina State.
Del Duca called Smith one of the "good guys" of the league and was planning to start visiting teams as a free agent this week. Del Duca said he has spoken with Smith's family and also is in touch with Coast Guard officials.
"They've assured me that they're deploying all available resources to look for these guys and get them back," he said.
Cooper, 26, has played sparingly in five seasons with the Buccaneers, Seattle Seahawks, Jacksonville Jaguars, Pittsburgh Steelers and Raiders. Cooper, who is 6-foot-3 and 230 pounds, played college ball at Washington.


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Well, I think it would be hard for somebody to not spot these men. Not to mention their physical ability to control themselves.

So, either they were sucked into the Bermuda Triangle or nabbed by pirates....

Oh wait, lets not rule out giant Squid either. :tongue2:
 
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Seriously though, Best wishes to them and they're families. Hope everything turns out ok.
 
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they've called the search off, so it isn't looking good.

Sal Palantonio of ESPN had a chance to talk with one of the missing boaters fathers', Mr. Bleakely, who is a former Navy officer. He said his son was an experienced fisherman, and the boat was essentially unsinkable, because it was filled with foam in all of its cavities. According to him, even if the boat flipped, it would stay afloat, and that the boat had life-vests so if it had sunk, which to him was unlikely, they'd be out in the water floating. He thinks the boat probably had engine failure, and they are drifting.

Sal Palantonio who is also a former Navy officer, said from his own experience, a 22 foot boat similar to the one they went out on, isn't particularly good for deep sea fishing, especially if it gets rocky. Mr. Bleakely says his son went out all the time, and it was well suited for deep fishing, so TFWIW.

Hopefully everything is OK, but it isn't looking good. The difficult thing to nail down is where they would be....they've searched a large area, but it isn't 100% where they were.
 
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That is the boat. Very unsinkable, and a good offshore boat that was built for that purpose. Still, seven foot waves with no power would be a bitch to be in. The NFL owner of the boat should make enough money for a good emergency transponder and GPS system.
 
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3074326;1420191; said:
MSNBC.com is reporting that the Coast Guard has found a boat with one survivor, but it's not confirmed that it's this particular boat..

Breaking News, Weather, Business, Health, Entertainment, Sports, Politics, Travel, Science, Technology, Local, US & World News- msnbc.com (no story, only a headline)
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ESPN is reporting that it is indeed the boat.. the survivor is not one of the NFL players, but is one of the other guys who was with them. Good that one is there, but bad that three are still missing. The boat was overturned and the survivor was clinging to it, apparently.
 
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