Rodney Torain, 17, of Chapel Hill, died in a hit-and-run wreck on Old Greensboro Road, west of Chapel Hill, early Sunday, Nov.16, 2008. He was the second football player for Chapel Hill High School to die this year.
Nov 16, 2008
CHAPEL HILL — A senior football player for Chapel Hill High School was killed in a hit-and-run wreck early Sunday, state troopers said.
Rodney Torain, 17, of Chapel Hill, died when a sedan struck a car that he was riding in at Old Greensboro and Neville roads, west of Chapel Hill, around 4 a.m., Trooper T.S. Wright said.
The driver, Ashley Bynum, 18, and a passenger, Laticia Farrington, 17 – both of Chapel Hill – said they were taking Torain home when they noticed that another car, occupied by several men, was following them closely.
Frightened by it, Bynum turned around to go back to town, Wright said. The car following them, however, tried to pass in a no-passing zone, Wright said. Torain's car was side-swipped and run off the right hand side of the road.
Bynum over-corrected and ran off the left side of the road, where the vehicle hit a tree in front of a private driveway, Wright said.
Torain suffered a head injury and died. Bynum and Farrington were treated at a hospital for minor injuries.
Troopers were looking for a gold or silver, four-door sedan. It has side-swipe damage on the passenger side. Anyone with tips about the wreck were asked to call 336-570-6809.
Wright said that Torain was not wearing a seat belt; Bynum and Farrington were wearing ones. The teens had not been drinking, he said.
Torain played as a defensive tackle and tight end, wearing No. 80 for the Tigers. The 6-foot-1, 270-pound Torain scored a touchdown on a 15-yard reception in his last home game of the regular season, a 48-20 victory over Jordan Nov. 7.
The team ended the regular season 8-3, and the shared the PAC 6 conference championship with Hillside and Southern Durham.
Chapel Hill received a No. 4 seed in the N.C. High School Athletic Association 4-A state playoffs. The Tigers hosted No. 13 Westover on Friday night, and the Wolverines upset Chapel Hill, 16-13.
According to Rivals.com, Torain was receiving interest from N.C. Central University for a football scholarship. He was also selected to represent North Carolina in the annual Shrine Bowl of the Carolina's game next month.
At the Scout.com combine in Charlotte, Torain ran a 5.31 forty-yard dash.
Torain was the second Chapel Hill football player to die this year. Senior Atlas Fraley, 17, died of unknown medical causes hours after a football scrimmage Aug. 12.
At a game honoring Fraley in late August, Torain told WRAL News that he and Fraley were as close as brothers and they had been best friends since elementary school.
“Atlas was the type of guy who brought out the best in everybody. If you were going through something, you could talk to him, you could count on him,” Torain said to WRAL.
A Facebook group, "R.I.P. Rodney </3," called Torain a "sweet, gentle soul." The group had over 80 members shortly after noon and was quickly gaining more.
A picture posted on the group showed Torain and Fraley as angels. It said "R.I.P. 2 Brothers: Forever loved and cherished."
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