FRANKLIN, Ga. — A 20-year-old college football player from Georgia was shot to death earlier this week.

Ashton Bonner was a running back for Heard County High School in Franklin, Georgia before playing for Central Methodist University in Fayette, Missouri for the 2023 - 2024 season.

While at Heard County High School, he was named Regional Athlete of the Year by Hudl. He graduated in 2021.

“He was the MVP of the team his senior season and electrifying every time he touched the field. Tough as nails and carried himself much larger than his frame,” school officials in Heard County wrote. “To know him was to love him, and we are surely going to miss seeing him on Friday nights.”

Bonner was shot to death at a LaQuinta Inn in Braselton on July 7, according to Brasleton News Today.

Qualiss Jermaine Simmons, 21, of Montgomery, Alabama, was charged in his death.

It’s unclear what led up to the shooting.