Who is Austin Metcalf? Why was the Frisco teen football star stabbed in the heart?

A Texas high school student and footballer, Austin Metcalf , was stabbed to death during a school track meet in Frisco, Texas, on Wednesday. The 17-year-old high school student was stabbed in the heart and died in the arms of his twin brother after a fight over a seat at a track meet, his heartbroken family says.


What happened?

Austin Metcalf was attending a track and field championship between other area schools at Kuykendall Stadium in Frisco, Texas, when the fatal attack happened on April 2.

Metcalf, a junior at Memorial High School outside Dallas, was in his team’s tent when a fight broke out between the teen and 17-year-old Karmelo Anthony , cops say.


Hunter Metcalf, Austin’s twin brother, who was also present at the event, recalled the incident. The heartbroken brother said that neither of the siblings had ever met Anthony before Wednesday’s meet, with the whole fight taking just seconds. Hunter told WFAA, “It really was under 30 seconds, this altercation. I never met this kid in my life.”

Hunter said he and his brother saw Anthony sitting at their post under the team tent and asked him to move. He told WFAA, “He started getting aggressive and talking reckless, and my brother stepped in and said, ‘You need to move’. And he’s like, ‘Make me move.’”

Hunter added, “All of a sudden, he grabbed his backpack.”

Seconds later, Hunter said Anthony pulled out a knife and stabbed Metcalf in his chest.


Hunter, who is just four minutes younger than Austin, told WFAA, "I tried to whip around as fast as I could, but I didn't see the stab. It was really senseless. I don't know why a person would do that to someone, just over that little argument."

Hunter reportedly held his brother until first responders arrived and began resuscitation efforts. CPR was performed at the scene before Austin was rushed to a local hospital, where he later succumbed to his injuries.


Who is Austin Metcalf?

Austin Metcalf was a Texas high school student and footballer. The 17-year-old was already a star in his twin brother Hunter’s eyes, who told CNN affiliate WFAA, “As a linebacker, he was a stud, and I always tried to fill those shoes and play with him. I had a blast my whole life playing sports with him.”

Austin Metcalf was attending a track and field championship between other area schools at Kuykendall Stadium in Frisco, Texas, when the fatal attack happened on April 2.

The 17-year-old high school student was stabbed in the heart and died in the arms of his twin brother, as Hunter recalled, “I tried to whip around as fast as I could. I looked at my brother and I’m not going to talk about the rest. I tried to help him.”


Austin was remembered as a star linebacker who had garnered attention from schools as he dreamed of playing football in college. He was recently voted his team’s Most Valuable Player and held a 4.0 GPA, according to a GoFundMe organized by his father, which has raised nearly $100,000 as of Thursday afternoon.

As per Jeff Metcalf, the twins’ father, “He was a bright young man with a great future ahead of him. He was a leader of men. His smile would light up the room. His passion for football was unbelievable.”


Why was Austin stabbed?

Austin was fatally stabbed by Karmelo Anthony, a 17-year-old student at Frisco Centennial High School. Anthony has been arrested and charged with murder in connection with the stabbing.

Anthony, who is also a 17-year-old, is a senior at Centennial High School, just five miles away, and was allegedly told he was sitting in the wrong seat. He then allegedly drew a knife and pierced Metcalf through the heart, the dead teen’s father, Jeff Metcalf, told NBC Dallas-Fort Worth.


Jeff Metcalf, the twins' father, said he couldn't believe a fight over a seat led to his son's death. He told NBC Dallas-Fort Worth, “I’m not trying to judge, but what kind of parents did this child have? What was he taught? He brought a knife to a track meet and he murdered my son by stabbing him in the heart. The guy was in the wrong place and they asked him to move and he bowed up [became angry and aggressive]. This is murder.”

“They were twins, identical twins, and his brother was holding on to him, trying to make it stop bleeding, and he died in his brother’s arms,” Jeff Metcalf recalled.

Hunter Metcalf called his parents to tell them about the stabbing, with their father rushing to find Austin on a gurney, not breathing.

Jeff Metcalf said, “I could see all the blood, and I saw where the wound was, and I was very concerned, so I had to find his brother, and we rushed to the hospital. And we prayed, and it’s God’s plan, I don’t understand it, but they weren’t able to save him. This is murder.”

The teen was pronounced dead at a local hospital.

Although Jeff added, “You know what, I already forgive this person. Already. God takes care of things. God is going to take care of me. God is going to take care of my family.”


Who is Anthony Karmelo?

Anthony, a 5-foot-10 free safety, revealed on social media he had received offers from several colleges, mostly Division III schools.

His father told the New York Post his son was a “good kid” and maintains that he did not start the fight that broke out between the two boys, saying, “[Karmelo] was not the aggressor. He was not the one who started it. He works two jobs. He’s an A student, has a 3.7 GPA.”

He added, “Everyone has already made their assumptions about my son, but he’s not what they’re making him out to be. I feel bad for the other parents and family, and words can’t explain how both people [families] have been affected by this tragedy.”