Parents know best, and on this case — dad might’ve been three steps ahead.
Former Georgia quarterback Aaron Murray said his father warned him to keep away from then-Florida Gators player turned-killer Aaron Hernandez during a recruiting trip in 2008.
Murray, a 4-star prospect who had received a proposal from Florida, was star-struck when he saw Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Tim Tebow, star linebacker Brandon Spikes after which Hernandez, who was a junior on the time.
But Murray’s father, Dennis, had a foul feeling.
“I remember my dad taking a look at me. He still jogs my memory to today of this, saying, ‘I don’t know who that child really is, but for those who commit to Florida I don’t think it is best to hang around with him,’” Murray said on his “SNAPS” podcast.
Murray cited Hernandez’s interaction with players and team personnel as a reason why his father said he should “stay near Tim (Tebow). Stay removed from Aaron (Hernandez).”
“It was just the way in which he [Hernandez] was interacting with coaches and players. Just that form of look in his eyes. I remember my dad literally taking a look at me, saying ‘I’m being dead-ass serious here, Aaron. In the event you commit to Florida, I don’t think it is best to get anywhere near that child.”
Murray turned down Florida in favor of the Georgia Bulldogs, where he played 4 seasons and holds the varsity record for all-time passing yards (13,166) and passing touchdowns(121).
“All the time looking,” Murray said in response to a fan who identified his father’s instincts.
Hernandez, who had been a person of interest and later cleared of the shootings of two men in Gainesville in 2007, departed Florida in 2010 when he was drafted into the NFL.
In 2015, the troubled tight end was found guilty of first-degree murder for the 2013 killing of Odin Leonardo John Lloyd in North Attleborough, Mass.
Hernandez was sentenced to life in prison without the potential for parole for the murder on the Souza-Baranowski Correctional Center, where he committed suicide inside his cell in 2017.
Months later, doctors discovered Hernandez was affected by severe CTE, in keeping with a press release from Boston University.
Hernandez’s fiancé, Shayanna Jenkins-Hernandez, was recently in hot water as she was accused of mishandling a trust fund left for the couple’s daughter in January.
In keeping with court documents, Jenkins-Hernandez spent around $12,000 at HomeGoods, $17,000 in clothing, and $10,000 in entertainment expenses, PEOPLE reported.
Police arrested Hernandez’s brother, Dennis “D.J.” Hernandez, after he threw a brick at ESPN’s headquarters in Bristol, Conn., in March.
Dennis Hernandez attempted to get through the gate but failed, prompting him to throw the brick at the positioning’s grounds before getting in an Uber, in keeping with TMZ Sports.
