JACKSONVILLE, Florida – Former Notre Dame and Louis Nix football player, who had been missing earlier this week, was found dead Saturday, family members told two Jacksonville television networks. He was 29 years old.
Nix’s family reported him missing Wednesday to police. After several days of searching, the Jacksonville sheriff’s office tweeted at 8 a.m. Saturday that Nix had been located but did not report Nix’s status. Action News, CBS / Fox affiliate Jax reported that Nix’s mother confirmed that Nix was dead. WJXT TV-4 reported Nix’s death through another family member.
According to the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, Nix was last seen at 10 a.m. ET on Wednesday, leaving his father’s residence in Jacksonville. Notre Dame football coach Brian Kelly sent a tweet Saturday morning asking for help from the public to find Nix.
Nix was injured in a shooting in December while filling his car’s tires at a gas station near Jacksonville Airport. He told social media that he spent 10 days in the hospital and that a bullet bounced off his sternum and entered his lung.
Nix starred at Raines High School in Jacksonville and played three seasons at Notre Dame before being signed in the third round by the Houston Texans in 2014. Nix, a defensive forward, never played a game for the Texans due to injuries to the knee and played in only four games in 2015 for the New York Giants. He also spent time on training squads with the Washington and Jacksonville Jaguars in 2016.