Terance Pope Jr., a defensive back on the Pierce College football team who aspired to play in the NFL, died on Dec. 17, 2024. He was 21 years old.
Pope Jr. was shot in Sanford, Fla., and three suspects have been arrested in connection to the killing. The Office of the State Attorney of Florida, has charged suspects Khalil Hunter, 22, and James Nelson, 22, with first-degree felony murder, and Shunavious Dorsey, 23, with being an accessory, for the killing. Pope Jr. grew up in Florida and was spending time with family there during winter break.
Pope Jr.’s mother, Zabrina Santiago, described him as a caring, playful older brother, a passionate athlete and a loving son. She said Pope Jr. would have turned 22 years old last month.
“He was growing up and maturing and he was still so young,” his mother said. “He was just a pleasure to have around.”
Pope Jr. started playing soccer when he was 3 years old, and picked up football by age 5, according to his stepfather, Nicholas Santiago.
“When you ask kids what they want to be when they grow up, they’ll give you 20 different answers throughout the years,” his stepfather said. “His answer was always the same: football, to be in the league. That answer never changed.”
According to his stepfather, Pope Jr. didn’t just have a goal — he had the persistence to back it up.
“We would work out in my garage, and I’d just destroy him,” his stepfather said. “When we were done, I said, ‘Where are you going? It’s dark out.’ He would go out to the practice field by himself, with cones and ladders, and run drills.”
Pope Jr. moved to the Los Angeles area in August 2024, and joined the Pierce football team with the hope of being recruited to play on a Division I university team. At Pierce, he played defense, and his primary position was cornerback.
“He was a quiet leader, even to a point that a lot of the things he was doing, I didn’t find out about until after his passing,” said James Sims, Pierce’s head football coach. “When he passed, I heard players saying that he was the one person that kept picking their spirits up and kept letting them know it was going to be alright, and he kept them confident.”
One of those players, Edgar Elias, said Pope Jr. motivated him to recover and stay on the team after Elias was injured on the field.
“He helped me push myself and inspired me,” Elias said. “He was a really hard worker.”
For Sims, a highlight of coaching Pope Jr. was when he won the Pierce football team’s “Fastest Man” competition. The friendly challenge involves football players completing rounds of 40-yard dashes, to test their agility.
“We had a sophomore that was the fastest man on the team the year before and Terance came in and took it from him, and became our fastest man on the football team,” Sims said. “He was an outstanding young man.”
Sims said Pope Jr.’s death “hurt deeply.” In his more than 20 years coaching football, four of Sims’ players have died from gun violence, either during the time they were on his team or after they had graduated.
Pope Jr.’s mother said he will be remembered by his uplifting personality. His family is raising money for a memorial. For more information, visit: https://www.gofundme.com/f/honor-terance-pope-jr-support-his-memorial
“He was loving, and he was always goofing around, and making his sisters smile,” his mother said. “I’m glad [the suspects] have been arrested, but it doesn’t bring my son back.”
