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Injured Lane Tech Player 'Can Feel Us Rooting for Him,' Sister Says

By Patty Wetli | October 10, 2013 3:28pm
 Drew Williams, Lane Tech football player (No. 3), remains in a coma after collapsing during Friday night's game.
Drew Williams, Lane Tech football player (No. 3), remains in a coma after collapsing during Friday night's game.
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Facebook/Lane Tech College Prep; CaringBridge.com

ROSCOE VILLAGE — A Lane Tech High School football player who collapsed on the sidelines last week "can feel us all rooting for him," his sister says.

The player, Drew Williams, is hospitalized and in a coma after suffering what the family said was "severe head trauma."

The player collapsed during last Friday night's game between Lane Tech and Dunbar High School, held at Gately Stadium in Roseland. He was transported to Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn, where his family stands watch.

On a a page created for Williams on CaringBridge, a social network site designed to share health-related information, his sister Annie Williams said "the nurses said his vitals increase when my parents are in the room."

"He can feel us! He can feel us all rooting for him," she wrote.

This morning, a number of students gathered at the school to pray for their fellow student.

On the site, some $25,000 has been pledged to the family.

Meanwhile, the boy's father, Chris Williams, told WGN TV that his son is "coming around now. ... He's doing better every day."

The father said the game "was pretty intense."

"They brought him to the sidelines and he was conscious. Once on the sidelines, he fainted," Chris Williams told the station.

"It's going to be a long road but a lot of people love him and support him and that's what you need at this time," he said.

On Wednesday, the family posted that "Drew is in critical condition, in a coma and he continues to fight for his life."

The family said that on Friday night he suffered a subdural hematoma. Doctors performed a craniotomy in an attempt to decrease brain swelling, the family posted. 

The precise cause of Williams' injury hasn't been identified.