Georgia
Georgia father, son dead after tree hits their golf cart during a Sunday storm: Coroner
A Georgia father and son who sought refuge under a tree during a storm Sunday evening were killed when the tree fell on their golf cart, according to officials.
Matthew Terrell Collins Sr., 58, and Matthew Terrell Collins Jr., 29, were at the Bull Creek Golf Course in Columbus when they were hit and killed, Muscogee County Coroner Buddy Bryan confirmed to USA TODAY Monday morning.
They were pronounced dead at 6:06 p.m. on Sunday, Bryan said.
A “violent storm” passed through the area between 4 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. or so that afternoon, Bryan said. The men were seeking refuge under the tree when it snapped and fell down on their golf cart.
Bryan said his team has ruled the death accidental, due to blunt force trauma or “crushed trauma.”
The coroner’s office investigates over 1,200 deaths a year. The ones that take place on golf courses are mostly due to lightning hitting trees, then traveling to the ground and hitting people.
“It’s extremely rare as far as being crushed like that,” Bryan said.
What was the weather like that day?
According to Bryan, the golf course was open because it’s normal for people to golf on Sundays.
“We knew that storms were going to be coming in and it was forecast that day, but this one came out of nowhere,” he told USA TODAY. “It was a little sprinkle and then within one minute it became extremely violent.’
Meredith Wyatt, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Peachtree City, said Monday morning that Sunday was “quite an active day” weather-wise. Weather officials called for severe weather such as a “strong line of thunderstorms associated with a cold front moving through” the area.
“The cold front stalled, or as it was moving through, it just kind of stopped, and there wasn’t really anything to progress that system completely through our area,” Wyatt told USA TODAY. “Many locations in North and central Georgia experienced waves of heavy rainfall … frequent lightning, heavy downpours and things of that nature.”
When asked what kind of reports the weather service has received so far due to the storm, she said the team is still gathering data as of Monday morning.
Father and son close with each other, loved ones say
GoFundMe fundraiser organizer Dustin Longnion shared online that Matthew Jr. was close to his father.
“They were spending time together when the storm struck—sharing a moment between father and son that would unknowingly become their last,” Longnion wrote, adding that Matthew Jr. was “a loyal friend, a kindhearted soul, and someone who always showed up for the people in his life.”
“He shared a deep bond with his father, and losing both of them so suddenly is a devastating blow to everyone who knew and loved them,” wrote Longnion.
As of Monday afternoon, the fundraiser has garnered over $13,000 of its $20,000 goal.
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp offered condolences to the family Sunday evening on social media.
“Marty, the girls, and I are saddened by the tragic deaths of two Georgians in Muscogee County today as a result of the severe weather,” he wrote on Facebook. “We ask that you join us in keeping their loved ones in our thoughts and prayers, along with all those responding to storm damage.”
Saleen Martin is a reporter on USA TODAY’s NOW team. She is from Norfolk, Virginia – the 757. Email her at sdmartin@usatoday.com.
The SEC has announced the future Georgia football conference opponents for the 2026 through 2029 seasons.
Georgia will face Florida, South Carolina and Auburn every season. The SEC announced on Friday that the annual opponents will be revisited every four seasons.
Georgia football future SEC opponents, schedule
- 2026: Florida (Atlanta), at South Carolina, Auburn, at Alabama, at Ole Miss, at Arkansas, Oklahoma, Missouri, Vanderbilt
- 2027: Florida (Tampa), South Carolina, at Auburn, at Kentucky, at Texas, at Texas A&M, LSU, Mississippi State, Tennessee
- 2028: Florida (Jacksonville), at South Carolina, Auburn, Alabama, Ole Miss, Arkansas, at Oklahoma, at Missouri, at Vanderbilt
- 2029: Florida (Jacksonville), South Carolina, at Auburn, Kentucky, Texas, Texas A&M, at LSU, at Mississippi State, at Tennessee
“it’s hard. I mean, it’s brutal. And everybody’s the same,” Georgia coach Kirby Smart said on Tuesday night. “I mean, we all gotta play each other. It’s really tough, highly ranked teams, physical teams. It’s just going to continue to be a grind. I mean, looking forward with the nines coming, it’s going to be scary because you just don’t have enough. Nobody has enough depth.”
Dates for the 2026 schedule will be announced in December, according to the conference. The schedules will be flipped in 2028 and 2029 from the home-road splits in 2026 and 2027.
In its scheduling outline, the SEC made it clear it wants competitively balanced schedules, which will be determined using the entire schedule and not just the annual opponents. Tennessee reportedly will face Alabama, Vanderbilt and Kentucky in each of the next four years. The latter two are not exactly football powerhouses.
According to the SEC, the highest opponent average winning percentage for any school in the 2026-29 schedules is 55.67% while the lowest is 46.65%, a difference of only 9.02%. From 2020 through 2023 — when the league still used the divisional format — the highest winning percentage was 61.32% and the lowest was 39.76%.
In addition to nine conference games, the SEC stipulates that schools face one Power Four in its nonconference scheduling.
Georgia’s game against Georgia Tech satisfies that requirement. Georgia has future nonconference games against Louisville, Florida State, Clemson and Ohio State on its schedule for the time being.
As it stands, Georgia has 13 games scheduled for the 2025 season. The Bulldogs have nonconfernce games against Tennessee State, Western Kentucky, Louisville and Georgia Tech.
“We’re working through that right now, and a lot of that’s going to be determined as we learn when and where our schedule is going to be in the next few weeks,” Georgia athletic director Josh Brooks said. “But that’s something we’re attacking right now to see what our options are going to be in 2026. So we’re going to take it one year at a time right now. The first focus is going to be on 2026 and then 2027 and moving on. So still a lot of work to be done, and I work closely with Coach Smart and Mark Robinson and the league to kind of figure out what is that going to mean for our schedule moving forward.”
Georgia takes on Alabama this week, with the game scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET on ABC.
The grounds for his arrest are still unknown, even to his attorneys.
We’re back for another week of college football action and the slate is loaded, including three games between ranked opponents.
Here’s how to watch in Week 3. Scroll down for live scores, highlights and more.
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Here are the best games this Saturday:
Clemson at Georgia Tech (+3), Noon ET, ESPN: The Tigers are just 3-point favorites ahead of their first road game. It’s a sign that expectations for Clemson have been way off. With Haynes King back, the Yellow Jackets will want to keep it on the ground.
Georgia at Tennessee (+4), 3:30 p.m., ABC: Has Georgia’s offense been good enough ahead of this pivotal SEC game? Saturday is the day to air it out as Tennessee will be without its top two corners again.
South Florida at Miami (-17.5), 4:30 p.m., The CW: The Bulls are the surprise team so far this season. Can they pull off a third straight upset, or will the ‘Canes handle business?
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Florida at LSU (-7), 7:30 p.m., ABC: This game was going to be the day’s marquee matchup before Florida’s loss to USF. A Florida victory would certainly quiet the idea that Billy Napier is on the hot seat.
Texas A&M at Notre Dame (-6.5), 7:30 p.m., NBC: Aggies QB Marcel Reed has thrown for seven TDs so far and A&M’s offense has racked up 953 total yards. The Irish will surely try to get the ball to their star running backs after a subpar opener.
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