Former Utah LB Stevenson Sylvester Shares Important Message After Aaron Lowe Tragedy

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – Former Utah linebacker Stevenson Sylvester shared an important message to the Utes football team following the Aaron Lowe tragedy.

Stevenson Sylvester joined SportsBeat on Sunday and talked about the tragic passing of Utah defensive back Aaron Lowe.

Sly started the conversation with an important message to student athletes.

“Well, for me, it goes to me being a former player, you know what it was like for me,” Sylvester told KSL Sports. “If something like this had happened and instantly it goes to where I’m at in that locker room. I’ve had plenty of parties in college and we’ve had altercations, but nothing ever led to something like that. So my personal opinions on things is just to make sure that you always got to watch your back as athletes. We are known people, so things just happen and things are intensified. But you got to know how to handle situations. So for me, this goes straight back to where were the teammates? What was going on? What was the actual situation? So I can’t really grasp or find exactly what happened because we don’t know. We don’t know what led to to that certain incident. But everybody needs to learn how to handle situations. Gun violence is not the answer. It just isn’t for any situation. Somebody of college football player stature needs to know how to relieve themselves from those situations.”

Aaron Lowe was shot and killed at a house party in Sugarhouse late Saturday night, early Sunday morning. Another person was shot and is currently in the hospital in critical condition.

.@slcpd has confirmed that Aaron Lowe was shot and killed early Sunday morning.

Truly devastating news for the @Utah_Football community. Thoughts and prayers are with them and Aaron Lowe's family.#RIP #LLAL @kslsports https://t.co/HSLz3FBlFL

— Trevor Allen (@TrevorASports) September 26, 2021

Now, the team is faced with dealing with another tragedy. This time it’s during the season. Sylvester weighed in from a players perspective on dealing with a tragedy during the season.

“Honestly, a football team is all you have,” Sylvester said. “Throughout the year, you’re in training camp with them, even in the offseason, it’s every single day. So those guys need to come together and look anything outside of football, like we’re not here at the training facility, but anything outside, we still need to hang out with each other. We need to have each other’s back because it is a crazy world and what people need to understand this is just a different generation that we’re living in. People handle things differently. A lot of people are going through different traumas that nobody else really knows. So what you need to do is go be around people that you trust, which are your teammates, who you’re around every single day. I know that you have your wives, your girlfriends and this and that but just know the dangers that are out there in the world.”

Lowe was the first recipient of the Ty Jordan Memorial Scholarship and switched his number from 2 to 22 during the offseason to honor the life of his childhood friend.

Before the BYU game, the Cougars ran out of their tunnel with a “LLTJ” flag. When Utah was running out of their tunnel, former Ute Samson Nacua gave the flag to quarterback and captain Cam Rising, who gave the flag to Aaron Lowe.

Lowe signed with Utah in 2019 as a three-star recruit out of West Mesquite High School. He played in 11 games on special teams as a freshman. During the COVID-19 shortened season, Lowe played in all five games on special teams in 2020.

According to a press release that was sent out Sunday morning by SLCPD, they received a call at approximately 10:30 p.m. MDT on Saturday, September 25 to a noise complaint about a house party at 2200-block of South Broadmoor Street. At approximately 12:30 a.m. MDT on Sunday, September 26, SLC911 received a call from a person in the neighborhood reporting a fight involving a weapon. Police were immediately dispatched after the change in circumstances increased the call from a noise complaint to an in-progress emergency.

The release also stated that it is being investigated as a homicide.

Police tweeted an update on Sunday at 8:30 a.m. MDT that the on-scene investigation concluded and all street closures have been lifted. They are asking that anyone with information on the case should call 801-799-3000 and reference case number 21-176828.

Trevor Allen is a Utah Utes Insider for KSLSports.com, Co-Host of Faith, Family and Football podcast with Clark Phillips III and host of the Crimson Corner podcast. Follow him on Twitter: @TrevorASports.