Florida State football’s Ethan Pritchard leaves rehab after shooting, reunites with teammates
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Florida State football player Ethan Pritchard had an emotional reunion with his teammates at practice on Friday.
Pritchard was away from the team after he was shot in the back of the head a day after FSU defeated the Alabama Crimson Tide in August.
The linebacker spent several weeks in a hospital after the shooting.
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Florida State Seminoles linebacker Ethan Pritchard during the first day of practice at the Albert J. Dunlap Athletic Training Facility on the Florida State University campus in July 2025 in Tallahassee, Florida. (Don Juan Moore/Getty Images)
After being released, the freshman checked into a rehabilitation center in Jacksonville. He rang a bell and received a standing ovation when he was discharged from the facility Thursday.
FLORIDA STATE HONORS ETHAN PRITCHARD, WHO WAS SHOT IN THE HEAD, DURING GAME AGAINST EAST TEXAS A&M
He is expected to attend the Seminoles’ home finale against Virginia Tech on Saturday. Pritchard was getting around in a power wheelchair when he arrived at practice Friday to visit his teammates and coaches.
Florida State linebacker and former Seminole High star Ethan Pritchard was shot during a meeting in Havana, just 30 minutes from Tallahassee, Florida. (Chris Hays/Orlando Sentinel/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)
Pritchard was a four-star recruit in high school and is a Florida native.
Investigators determined that Pritchard was the victim of mistaken identity and “wasn’t doing anything wrong” when he was shot outside an apartment complex near Tallahassee on Aug. 31. Authorities said Pritchard was dropping off an aunt and child after a family party when he was attacked.
Florida State linebacker Ethan Pritchard walks toward the stadium before a game against Duke on Oct. 21, 2023, in Tallahassee, Florida. (AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack, File)
In September, four people were arrested in the shooting.
“I remember it all,” Pritchard said in an interview with WESH-TV in Orlando. “I turned the corner and gunshots were heard. I put the car in reverse and just backed up, and after that, I don’t remember what else happened.”
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Pritchard added that he couldn’t move his right side when he arrived at the rehab center in Jacksonville, but he woke up one morning able to move and continues to improve.
The News contributed to this report.
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Chantz Martin is a sports writer for News Digital.