Evan Murray, 17, died following an injury received during a Warren Hills Regional High School football game Friday night.
The dynamics of 17-year-old Evan Murray could be magnified 10 times and still not match his capabilities, a family friend said Sunday.
While many teens were soaking up the sun and relaxing on summer vacation, Murray rarely was putting his feet up.
A typical day for the Warren Hills Regional High School senior would include waking up early to work out, playing in a football scrimmage and later competing in a baseball or basketball game.
Sports was in Murray's blood ever since he moved with his family to New Jersey from Michigan as a youngster. By the time he reached age 7 or 8, Murray was playing for an all-star baseball team on which Chris Hamler, of Asbury, served as one of the coaches.
Murray, of Washington Township in Warren County, immediately made friends with teammates. He had a work ethic that was unsurpassed. And he was the "go to" player for those with issues on the field, Hamler recalled.
He excelled at football, played for the Washington Township Panthers and later joined the Blue Streaks' feeder program. By the team he got to Warren Hills Regional High, Murray's goal was to become starting quarterback. He achieved that as a 10th-grader.
Murray also was an exceptional basketball player, Hamler said.
"The kid was just driven," he said. "He was a perfectionist."
RELATED: Funeral services set for Warren Hills QB Evan Murray
Murray died after being injured in a varsity football game Friday night. Officials have offered no details of how he was injured. Autopsy findings won't be in until at least Monday, said Warren County Prosecutor Richard Burke.
Murray was an only child survived by his parents, Tom and Kelly Murray, as well as several aunts, uncles, cousins and extended family members. Funeral services are set for Wednesday and Thursday.
Off the field
Off the field, Murray was an honors student, a peer leader and volunteer, often found helping mothers of teammates at the end of charity functions, Hamler said.
College recruiters were noticing, Hamler said. Murray's goal was to play baseball in college and continue being a starting pitcher.
"If you look at your school and say, 'Who's going to be the next president of the United States?,' Hamler said, "this was the kid."
His favorite teams were the Pittsburgh Steelers, Pittsburgh Pirates and Detroit Tigers.
Spare time was spent with longtime girlfriend Bailey Reyes, a college freshman. He also enjoyed traveling back home with his parents to Michigan to see family, Hamler said.
Hamler's son Austin, a Warren Hills senior who played with Murray in Friday night's game, was invited on some of the family's trips. On a particular Easter vacation to North Carolina, the boys returned dressed in powder blue -- the team colors of the University of North Carolina -- after a baseball game there.
"He just loved being around the athletics," Hamler said.
RELATED: Warren Hills quarterback dies after football injury
The Rev. Guy Selvester, St. Joseph's Roman Catholic Church in Washington (Courtesy Photo)Coping with loss
Family members, neighbors and friends of Murray all gathered Sunday outside the family home. They offered each other hugs and solemnly brushed away tears.
Murray's parents remained too grief-stricken to speak publicly, friends said.
Teammates and friends who already left flower bouquets and handwritten cards are planning a larger tribute when they are up to it, Hamler said.
During Sunday Mass at St. Joseph's Roman Catholic Church in Washington, the Rev. Guy Selvester asked the congregation to remember Murray in their prayers.
"We pray for him, we pray for his family for the loss of a child and his extended family ...we pray for his teammates, we pray for his classmates in school and the whole high school," Selvester said. "And our whole community at large who experienced this tragic loss -- that all those who knew him are comforted."
Following Mass, Selvester said he visited the school and reached out to anyone who needed counseling. While the Murrays didn't belong to St. Joseph's, many parishioners knew Murray and are grieving, he said.
In counseling those with grief, Selvester said it's going to be hard on young people who don't think their lives can be cut short. The loss of a peer is rare, he said.
"It's really going to take them a long time to cope with it," Selvester said. "Their emotions will run the whole gamut from sadness to anger to confusion. They'll ask, 'Did this have to happen?'"
Selvester said many might not want to play football again, but should, knowing feelings of being distressed are normal.
"It's OK to grieve," Selvester said. "It means we loved and cared for somebody. Work through the feelings, but don't suppress them or push them under. Everybody grieves at their own speed. Be patient with one another."
Many have taken to social media to grieve, including Reyes, Murray's girlfriend, who tweeted Saturday, "I lost the love of my life last night. I miss you Evan and I love you indefinitely."
I lost the love of my life last night. I miss you Evan and I love you indefinitely
-- bailey reyes (@baileyreyess) September 26, 2015
Guidance counselors remain at the high school for students, said Hamler, who also is a Warren Hills Regional School District board member.
Parents, faculty and community members continue to rally behind one another, Selvester said.
"The whole community and outcry of support ... it makes you very proud of your town in a terrible situation no one should ever have to deal with," Hamler said.
Pamela Sroka-Holzmann may be reached at pholzmann@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow her on Twitter @pamholzmann. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.