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Corey Smith, a free agent, formerly of the Detroit Lions, and Marquis Cooper of the Oakland Raiders are among the four people missing at sea. The fishing boat they were on went missing off the Gulf Coast of Florida, according to broadcast and print reports in the Tampa area.
Coast Guard officials said that the four friends departed from the Clearwater, Florida area on a 21-foot fishing boat at approximately 6:30 AM on Saturday, February 28th. According to reports, the fishing boat is believed to be in distress. The waters in the area where they went missing is extremely choppy and Coast Guard crews have been searching a 750-square-mile area west of Clearwater Pass for the missing vessel.
The fishing boat was reported missing by family members on Sunday at around 1:30 AM and search efforts began at 2:00 AM, according to the Tampa Tribune. The search consisted of airplanes, helicopters and rescue boats. However, there were high winds and rough waters, which impacted the search efforts.
"We had a 47-foot vessel searching earlier today, and we had to pull it in because it was too rough," Coast Guard petty officer Sondra-Kay Kneen said.
The National Weather Service in Tampa reported that seas were approximately two to four feet Saturday morning and increased to three to five feet in the afternoon. Late Saturday evening, a small-craft advisory was issued and on Sunday seas reached eight to 12 feet. Winds were blowing up to 30 knots.
The group of men missing include, Cooper, 26, Smith, 29, and former University of South Florida football players Will Bleakley, 25, and Nick Schuyler, 24.
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