University of Southern California assistant football coach Dave Nicholl dies at the age of 45

Dave Nicholl, who was hired last December to be Lincoln Riley’s reception coach at USC, died Friday. He was only 45 years old.

Nicole walked away from the team indefinitely earlier this week due to what was described as a “private medical issue”. The announcement of Nicole’s departure came a day before USC began spring training on Tuesday.

“We are devastated and devastated. Dave was an amazing human being and a great football coach. He absolutely loved the game and continually poured his heart and soul into his teams. We will miss him greatly. My thoughts and prayers are with his family. We, as a program, are looking forward to playing and training for him as we move forward,” Riley said in a statement issued by the school.