On Thursday, the family of the late Jake Ehlinger released a statement saying that the former Texas football player died in May due to an accidental overdose of what is believed to have been Xanax laced with Fentanyl.
The Austin police said they responded to a call at 12:18 p.m. May 6 and found Ehlinger in the 1200 block of West 22nd Street.
The Westlake graduate was only 20.
“Today we are sad to share that we have learned that Jake was a victim of an accidental overdose of what was believed to be Xanax laced with toxic drugs including deadly Fentanyl,” the Ehlinger family statement said. “The spread of counterfeit pills is an ongoing and significant issue throughout our country, particularly in schools, colleges, and universities.”
“As our family continues to process Jake’s death, we felt it was important to share these details with the hope that Jake will not have died in vain. We pray that sharing Jake’s story will help shed light on this problem and prevent other families from also tragically losing a loved one.”
“Our hearts are broken, and we are still grieving over the loss of our son and brother, Jake,” the statement said. “We have been overwhelmed by the outpouring of love and support received since his untimely passing in May. We sincerely thank everyone who has reached out.”
Ehlinger’s brother, Sam Ehlinger, attended the funeral and then went back to Indianapolis. Sam is a Texas alumnus and a quarterback for the Colts.
Jena Ehlinger, Sam’s and Jake’s mother, has not spoken publicly.
“I think, as men, there’s an idea that you have to be tough, and instead of correctly addressing, identifying and releasing those emotions, you bottle them up and push them down, and it’s almost like it’s a bomb-building up inside of you,” Sam said of his brother’s death.
