Former Iowa Football Player Cody Ince Dead at 23
Cody John Ince, who retired from playing football after he was injured, has passed away. He was just 23 years old.
According to his official obituary, he died unexpectedly at home near Grantsburg, Wisconsin, on Saturday, July 15.
During his college years, he played as an offensive lineman on the University of Iowa's football team, the Hawkeyes.
The team's head coach Kirk Ferentz used the team's Twitter account to issue a statement following Ince's death, writing, “I am incredibly sad to hear about Cody Ince’s sudden passing. Cody was a tremendous young man, valued teammate and contributor to our program."
He continued, "He loved football, fishing and hunting, and believed in the importance of family and friendships. Cody was just beginning this next chapter of his life and was about to be married.”
“Mary and I are heartbroken for his fiancée, his family and all his friends who knew and loved him," Ferentz added. "All of us in the football program — his coaches and teammates — are mourning his loss."
We’re mourning the loss of one of our own.
Rest easy, Cody. 💛🖤 pic.twitter.com/Ou4zLC9hcj— Hawkeye Football (@HawkeyeFootball) July 18, 2023
The college athlete played in 29 games, starting in 10 of them, over his three-year college career. According to Scott Dochterman, who covers Iowa football for The Athletic, he was forced to retire a year early after he was injured, preventing him from pursuing a "legitimate NFL career."
He is survived by his fiancé, Olivia Tucker, his parents, Tammy and Marty Ince, his sister and her fiancé, Carly Ince and Drew Alderman, his maternal grandmother, Lola Royer, his paternal grandmother, Betty Ince, and a number of other aunts, uncles, cousins, and friends.
The family has requested that, in lieu of flowers, donations be made in Ince's name to the University of Iowa Children's Hospital, or that a memorial tree be planted through the family's Tree Store.
