Conversations hushed and students bustling across the University of Virginia’s Grounds slowed or stopped at 1:55 p.m. on Thursday as the UVA Chapel chimes rang out “Amazing Grace” and a bell tolled three times in honor of Lavel Davis Jr., D’Sean Perry and Devin Chandler.
The three football players were fatally shot on Nov. 13, 2022, when a gunman opened fire onboard their bus as it returned from a class trip. Two other student-athletes, track and field athlete Marlee Morgan and football player Mike Hollins, were wounded.
In near silence, students, staff, faculty and community members walked from the UVA Chapel down Rugby Road to the Betsy and John Casteen Arts Grounds, where they gathered near a memorial to the players and a tree planted in their honor.
UVA football team chaplain and former Cavalier player Vincent Croce read from a Bible passage, 1 Corinthians 15, and offered a prayer. Another speaker praised Davis, Perry and Chandler for their achievements and their lasting impact on the community.
Lavel Davis Jr., Devin Chandler and D’Sean Perry are remembered for their infectious spirits on Grounds and their dedication to their football teammates.
Then more than 100 people stood quietly as family, friends and teammates paid tearful respects, laying colorful bouquets of roses, sunflowers, daisies and carnations beside the stone marker.
Former UVA women’s rowing team members Lauren Benedict and Izzie Bird, who both graduated in 2024, were among the last to leave.
“We wanted to be here. We knew them. They were our friends,” Benedict said. “It’s important that this continues and that they are remembered. It means a lot to us.”
Bird, who lives in London, agreed.
“It was important to be here and I flew in for that reason,” she said. “We don’t want them to be forgotten.”
