Patriots owner loans team plane to UVA football team to attend teammates’ funerals

By Jerry Ratcliffe

Thanks to the generosity of New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft, the University of Virginia football team managed to attend funeral and memorial services of their three fallen teammates at no cost.

Kraft loaned the NFL team’s plane to UVA so they could fly to those services, a Patriots spokesperson confirmed to NBC Sports. The Patriots sent their team plane to Charlottesville to transport Virginia’s football team to D’Sean Perry’s funeral Saturday in Miami and Devin Chandler’s funeral in Virginia Beach.

According to reports, Lavel Davis Jr.’s memorial is scheduled for Wednesday in North Charleston, S.C.

The three were allegedly gunned down and killed by Christopher Darnell Jones Jr., a UVA student, on the night of Nov. 13, after all returned from a day-long class field trip to Washington, D.C.

Another player, Mike Hollins, was wounded, treated and released after two surgeries. Another student, Marlee Morgan, was also treated and released.

Jones faces three counts of second-degree murder, which can be upgraded, along with other charges.

UVA canceled its final two games of the season against Coastal Carolina and Virginia Tech.