DETROIT – Students at Detroit's Frederick Douglass Academy for Young Men remembered a beloved football coach Wednesday evening.
Blanton Anton Day recently died after suffering a heart attack. He spent more than 30 years coaching and refereeing football in the Detroit area.
"He's always going to be here in my heart," Jafari Green said.
Green was looking forward to playing his senior year season under Day. Green said Day was like a second father to him.
"He made sure I stayed on the football field 24/7, and he helped me get a job so I wouldn't be in the streets when I didn't have practice," he said.
Green and other players are determined to keep working hard to honor Day.
"His thing was to push, push you through and let you know you can make it, you can do it," said D.C. Carter, a friend of Day's and fellow coach.