OPA-LOCKA, Florida (Oct. 23, 2019) - Dwight Jackson was helpless. The flight attendant had closed the door, the safety instructions were underway, and the Southwest Airlines direct flight from Fort Lauderdale to Washington, D.C., was taking off whether he liked it or not. The flight attendant's standard demand for cell phones to be switched to airplane mode had no chance of getting compliance.

Behind the Miami Central High School assistant coach, many of the Rockets' 70-plus players, coaches and staff were madly searching, texting, Snapchatting, burning through messaging apps to glean anything -- just one more shred or scrap of intel -- before the plane's ascent plunged all their devices into no-signal darkness. Just before takeoff, the frightening news had reached the plane, and this is all they knew:

Anthony Jones had been shot, and earliest word was the bullet hit the former Rockets star and current Florida International running back in the face.

They boarded that flight Sept. 6 of last year and were headed for a marquee showdown of two high school football teams ranked in the nation's top 10, against St. John's College High, looking to uphold a legacy that Jones, and to a larger extent, Jones' entire family, had helped build. For two-and-a-half agonizing hours, they flew expecting the worst -- anxious, but at the same time, afraid to land and re-activate their phones. The coaches made the difficult decision not to address the team on the flight, because they felt more information was needed to do so.

As the wheels came up and the nose of the plane pointed skyward, Jackson began to pray.

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The FIU football team improved to 4-3 over the weekend, as the Panthers downed UTEP 32-17 to earn their third-straight win of the season. FIU travels to Middle Tennessee this Saturday, as the Panthers and Blue Raiders matchup will air on NFL Network. The Panthers return home on Nov. 2 to host Old Dominion at noon, before closing out the home slate against Miami at Marlins Park on Nov. 23. For those interested in purchasing tickets, click here.
    
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