PHILIPPI, W.Va. — A car wreck from Sunday afternoon left all of Barbour County in mourning. The crash in Randolph County claimed the life of recent Philip Barbour High School graduate and standout athlete Keaton “Beef” McDermott.
“I got the team together and we were at the field last night until about 11:30. Then I went over and visited with his parents briefly. At home, I’ve got a nine year old son who plays center and really looked up to him,” said Philip Barbour Head Football Coach Nick Mayle.
Also in the vehicle with McDermott was his girlfriend. She suffered severe injuries and was taken to Davis Memorial Hospital in Elkins before being flown to Ruby Memorial Hospital in Morgantown. The accident involved multiple vehicles and remains under investigation by the Randolph County Sheriff’s Department.
The 18-year old McDermott was a four-year varsity football player for the Colts and a standout member of the school’s track and field team. He had recently competed in the state track meet after winning the regional title in shot-put and discus. He had also just played in two football All-Star Games including the North-South All-Star Game in South Charleston earlier this month. McDermott was committed to participate in track and field for West Virginia Wesleyan College starting this fall.
Let’s get it!@CoachPetro_WVWC pic.twitter.com/39NlIVB6RS
— Keaton “Beef” McDermott (@BeefMcDermott) February 23, 2024
“Beef was just every coach’s dream and ever parent’s dream. He was a great kid for our school and our community,” said Mayle.
Last summer, Mayle said they were in need of a center and asked McDermott to do the job. Mayle shared he had a couple of bad snaps during the summer workouts and committed himself to doing 1,500 snaps on his own before the fall practice started. He spent the whole summer completing the task.
“He was just the hardest working kid I’ve ever been around in my 20 plus years of coaching, He was a captain, and not just on the field, but off the field. He just wanted to make everybody’s life better and he did that. He was just a great young man,” he said.