TAMPA, Florida — A community mourns the loss of a young man with a profound impact.
Early Monday morning, 33-year-old Jared Speights Sr. was shot and killed.
Hillsborough County deputies said they were called after 3:40 a.m. to the Playhouse Gentlemen's Club after reports of shots fired in the parking lot. When they arrived, deputies found Speights and rushed him to St. Joseph's Hospital where he died.
Days later his family and friends are opening up for the first time after his death. Speaking only to 10 Tampa Bay's Angelina Salcedo, they say his legacy lives on despite their tragic loss.
"I'm praying, asking God to keep his life," Lawanda Richardson said.
The mom of six children had just gotten word her third child had been shot. She was asking for divine intervention.
"They didn't let us into the hospital, which I understand. I just wish I could've been there with my son so he could have that human support. The officer came back again and said, 'I'm sorry, that your son's deceased.; It took almost everything out of me," Richardson said.
She now grieves the loss of her baby. She called him, a father of seven children himself, her son and her love. Jared's family says he was loving, caring and turning his life around. He recently graduated and became a barber.
"It was a transition both for me and him. For him because he was changing into a man. For me, I was understanding who he was," Richardson said.
Football was his passion. Not only did he play himself, but he also coached the former Tampa Hurricanes, now the Inner City Bengals.
"I remember at 18 months him being on the football field and all the way to 33 he was still on that football field. He was very persistent and very athletic," Richardson said.
The field was his second home. His former coach says when he was coaching, Jared wasn't just teaching the game, but he was a part of it too.
"Like if the kids are running, he's running with the kids. He was a good mentor. Even after he took a break from coaching he was still connected to the kids He'd still go to the kids' games. He'd show up at the park on Saturdays at their games," Joel Germain said.
He gave Jared his first coaching job years ago. After Jared and his son Jephte became close friends, Joel and Jared's relationship grew even closer. Jephte was hit and killed by a car at just 16 years old while he was walking to football practice in 2018.
"He'd always reach out to me to check up on me on how am I feeling internally, mentally, emotionally. I would always get his texts, 'You okay? Just checking up on you. I know today's the day that he passed. I know today's his birthday. I know today's Father's Day. How are you doing?' He knew how I felt because he was a father too. So not getting those texts or hearing from him, I'm gonna miss that," Germain said.
On the field Jared was known as 'Coach Knockout' or 'Coach JJ' and the relationship he had with all the kids was strong. His impact on and off the field was more than he could've imagined.
"Because the bond that you have with these kids, it's not just for that moment. It wasn't for the moment for him. Especially the youth in the inner city to have a relationship with these kids, it goes beyond for years," Germain said.
Now while his football family and friends remember him and thank him for his dedication and mentorship, his mom wants him to know she's proud.
"I'm proud of your legacy. I'm a happy mom because God chose me for you. That's what I want him to know," Richardson said.
Jared's family is looking to bury him on the same day he would've been baptized next week and is raising funds for his service and kids. If you'd like to help you can cash app $Blkprincess10.
The Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office is still investigating the shooting. We reached out and they told us no arrests have been made in the case.