A University of North Georgia basketball player was the victim of a fatal wreck on Ga. 400 early Monday morning in Dawson County, officials confirmed Thursday.
Ross Morkem, 19, was a 2015 graduate of Lambert High School in Suwanee, according to a news release from the university.
He was killed when his Ford Mustang went off the road and hit a utility pole, according to Cpl. J.A. Caldwell with the Georgia State Patrol in Cumming. Morkem was not wearing a seat belt, and Caldwell said drugs and alcohol were not involved.
Nobody else was involved in the wreck.
"Our Nighthawk family suffered a tremendous loss on Monday," said UNG head men's basketball coach Chris Faulkner in a statement.
"Our thoughts and prayers are with the Morkem family, friends and his teammates. He represented North Georgia in a first-class manner and was an excellent teammate during his time at UNG. Everyone that came in contact with Ross loved him."
The family is having a public reception on Sunday at the Three Chimneys Farm Clubhouse in Cumming from 2 to 4 p.m.
They're asking that, in lieu of flowers, donations be made to the Ross Morkem Scholarship Fund.
