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Scenario Bleak for Missing NFL Boaters

 Deanna Fene     Created: 3/16/2009 4:36:27 PM    Updated: 3/16/2009 5:10:41 PM
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TAMPA, FL -- Records from the search for two missing NFL players and two friends paint a bleak picture of what happened after their boat overturned off Tampa, Florida.

According to documents obtained by The Associated Press, lone survivor Nick Schuyler (SKY-ler) told the Coast Guard one man "freaked out" and took off his life vest Feb. 28, the night the boat capsized.

Later that night, another became unruly and threw punches. He took off his life vest, dove down and never resurfaced. A third thought he saw land and decided to swim.

The men's names were redacted in the report.

Oakland Raiders linebacker Marquis Cooper, free-agent NFL defensive lineman Corey Smith and former University of South Florida players Schuyler and William Bleakley were aboard the 21-foot boat.

©2009 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, rewritten, or redistributed.



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