Randall Posted March 1, 2009 Share Posted March 1, 2009 Truck belonging to missing Oakland Raiders player Victor "Marquis' Cooper, who is among 4 people believed to be missing in the Gulf of Mexico (Kyle Cote) CLEARWATER, FL -- The Coast Guard is continuing to search for a missing fishing boat about 50 miles off-shore in the Gulf of Mexico. According to Coast Guard officials, a 21-foot Everglades fishing boat left from the Seminole boat ramp in Clearwater Pass Saturday about 6:30 am with 4 people on board. Friends Victor "Marquis" Cooper, Nick Schulyer, Corey Smith and William Bleakley haven't been seen since. 2 of the men are professional football players with ties to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Cooper, whose truck and trailer is till parked at the boat ramp where the men left from, is a linebacker with the Oakland Raiders. Smith is a defensive end for the Detroit Lions. Both began their careers with the Bucs. Schuyler and Bleakley are former USF players. Bleakley played tight end for the Bulls from 2004-06, and and Schuyler was a walk-on defensive end in 2006. USF Athletics Director Doug Woolard released a statement Sunday. “Our thoughts and prayers are with the family and friends of Will and Nick, as well as the Florida Coast Guard as they continue their search.” Cooper and Smith had been on fishing trips before, said Ron Del Duca, Smith's agent. The pair were teammates in 2004 with Tampa Bay. Officials say the waters in the gulf are extremely choppy and they believe the boat is in distress. Air and marine crews from the Sand Key and Clearwater Coast Guard stations,including a helicopter and a 47-foot boat, are searching a 750 square mile area west of Clearwater Pass. Officials did not receive a distress signal from the missing craft. Coast Guard Capt. Timothy M. Close said the weather early Saturday had been fair, but worsened toward the evening as a front still battering the area moved in. The National Weather Service said seas were about 2 to 4 feet Saturday morning and increased to 3 to 5 feet in the afternoon. Late Saturday night, a small craft advisory was issued, when winds were around 20 knots and seas were up to 7 feet or more. There were no thunderstorms in the area. At least one of the men was an experienced boater, and relatives provided the Coast Guard with GPS coordinates from previous fishing expeditions. Close said there was no communication with the men even before the weather started to pick up. They were expected home by early evening. No sign of them or the boat had been spotted by late Sunday afternoon. Poor weather conditions could be dangerous for a boat the size of Cooper's. "A 21-foot boat is a relatively small vessel to be 50 miles off shore in bad weather conditions, certainly the current weather conditions," Close said. The Coast Guard search was mainly taking place by air, and was hampered by the poor weather, Close said. He said there were 14-foot seas offshore and wind gusts of up to 30 mph. Water depth in the area where they are searching ranges from 20 to 50 feet. Close said there was no sign yet that the men sent a distress signal. "That's not to say they didn't send one out," he said. "We didn't receive anything." Smith, 29, had 30 tackles, including three sacks, and an interception in 12 games last season for the winless Lions. Smith, who is 6-foot-2, 250 pounds, also played for the San Francisco 49ers and played college ball at North Carolina State. Del Duca called Smith one of the "good guys" of the league and was planning to start visiting teams as a free agent this week. He said he has spoken with Smith's family and is also in touch with Coast Guard officials. "They've assured me that they're deploying all available resources to look for these guys and get them back," he said. Cooper, 26, has played five seasons with the Buccaneers, Seahawks, Jaguars, Steelers and Raiders. He appeared in 26 games with the Buccaneers in 2004 and 2005, recording 30 tackles. He has played sparingly since as he has bounced between teams, appearing in 13 games and recording 10 tackles. Cooper, who is 6-foot-3, 230 pounds, played college ball at Washington. His hometown is Mesa, Ariz., and his father Bruce is a prominent sportscaster for KPNX-TV in Phoenix. Lions spokesman Bill Keenist and Raiders senior executive John Hererra said the teams are monitoring reports. ------ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Capt. Waffle Posted March 1, 2009 Share Posted March 1, 2009 Gulf temps are running about 60 degrees. Here is a chart: IF THE WATER TEMPERATURE (F) IS: EXHAUSTION OR UNCONSCIOUSNESS EXPECTED TIME OF SURVIVAL IS: 32.5 Under 15 Minutes Under 15 - 45 Minutes 32.5 - 40.0 15 - 30 Minutes 30 - 90 Minutes 40.0 - 50.0 30 - 60 Minutes 1 - 3 Hours 50.0 - 60.0 1 -2 Hours 1 - 6 Hours 60.0 - 70.0 2 - 7 Hours 2 - 40 Hours 70.0 - 80.0 3 - 12 Hours 3 Hours - Indefinitely OVER 80.0 Indefinitely Indefinitely Thank you for that, I was hoping for warmer water temps, this looks bleak. Hopefully this front will clear out and there will be good weather for a better search come daylight. These kind of situations make you feel helpless, especially if you are a Capt. like myself, my brother is a shrimp boat captain and he has called me about this as well. Hopefully the Good Lord and Lady Luck are with those sailors tonight. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Randall Posted March 2, 2009 Share Posted March 2, 2009 They are searching 10,000 square miles today. NBC said yesterday they had trouble searching due to low hanging clouds and whitecaps. It doesn't look good unless the boat is still upright. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jackass Posted March 2, 2009 Share Posted March 2, 2009 They are searching 10,000 square miles today. NBC said yesterday they had trouble searching due to low hanging clouds and whitecaps. It doesn't look good unless the boat is still upright. 10,000 square miles?? so there somewhere in an area that encompasses the size of approximately new york to florida to lousiana and up to ohio?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big John Posted March 2, 2009 Share Posted March 2, 2009 10,000 square miles?? so there somewhere in an area that encompasses the size of approximately new york to florida to lousiana and up to ohio?? 10,000 square miles is a 100 mile by 100 mile area. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tazinib1 Posted March 2, 2009 Share Posted March 2, 2009 They are searching 10,000 square miles today. NBC said yesterday they had trouble searching due to low hanging clouds and whitecaps. It doesn't look good unless the boat is still upright. Supposedly, the boat is un-sinkable. According to the manufacture. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flip_Side Posted March 2, 2009 Share Posted March 2, 2009 Supposedly, the boat is un-sinkable. According to the manufacture. Yeah and so was the Titanic. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fingfootball Posted March 2, 2009 Share Posted March 2, 2009 Out of fuel or not, this boat should have a radio. Right? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Capt. Waffle Posted March 2, 2009 Share Posted March 2, 2009 Out of fuel or not, this boat should have a radio. Right? They should, however, a boat that size could go with a handheld.....and if they didn't recharge it ala like a cell phone, or they took water over the bow or transom that could have shorted out the electrical system??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jackass Posted March 2, 2009 Share Posted March 2, 2009 10,000 square miles is a 100 mile by 100 mile area. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
forever in debt to mo lewis Posted March 2, 2009 Share Posted March 2, 2009 they found a capsized boat with someone hanging on Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whomper Posted March 2, 2009 Share Posted March 2, 2009 Thats just what this thread needed to break the tension. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tazinib1 Posted March 2, 2009 Share Posted March 2, 2009 they found a capsized boat with someone hanging on Just heard this as well. 30 miles off the coast of Gulf of Mexico. No confirmation it is the boat they are looking for however. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
T_bone65 Posted March 2, 2009 Share Posted March 2, 2009 Just heard this as well. 30 miles off the coast of Gulf of Mexico. No confirmation it is the boat they are looking for however. Fox news has confirmed it is the boat, they are talking to Coopers cousin right now Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Randall Posted March 2, 2009 Share Posted March 2, 2009 (edited) Out of fuel or not, this boat should have a radio. Right? And GPS on their cell phones? Supposedly, the boat is un-sinkable. According to the manufacture. But when it floats upside down where do you sit? Edited March 2, 2009 by Randall Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Randall Posted March 2, 2009 Share Posted March 2, 2009 (edited) Nick Schuyler is the survivor according to his father(via MSNBC) Fox News said they heard the others were wearing life jackets. They have a chance. Edited March 2, 2009 by Randall Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikesVikes Posted March 2, 2009 Share Posted March 2, 2009 Nick Schuyler is the survivor according to his father(via MSNBC) Fox News said they heard the others were wearing life jackets. They have a chance. I hope they are found soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikesVikes Posted March 2, 2009 Share Posted March 2, 2009 But when it floats upside down where do you sit? You probably sit out of luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
T_bone65 Posted March 2, 2009 Share Posted March 2, 2009 Nick Schuyler is the survivor according to his father(via MSNBC) Fox News said they heard the others were wearing life jackets. They have a chance. They are interviewing the coast guard pilot now and he says all 4 of them were together at 2AM this morning and they all had life jackets on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Randall Posted March 2, 2009 Share Posted March 2, 2009 They are interviewing the coast guard pilot now and he says all 4 of them were together at 2AM this morning and they all had life jackets on. If they were conscious that's great news. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
T_bone65 Posted March 2, 2009 Share Posted March 2, 2009 Fox is saying that the other 3 decided to swim off on their own at 2AM, so they were all conscious Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Puddy Posted March 2, 2009 Share Posted March 2, 2009 Fox is saying that the other 3 decided to swim off on their own at 2AM, so they were all conscious Man...that is a mistake. Hopefully they are safe but why they would try to swim instead of waiting with the boat is beyond me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Randall Posted March 2, 2009 Share Posted March 2, 2009 (edited) I'm reading they said the boat was anchored when the storm hit. How deep is the gulf 35 miles offshore? Wow not too deep at all it seems. I thought it dropped off sonner than this. Edited March 2, 2009 by Randall Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Capt. Waffle Posted March 2, 2009 Share Posted March 2, 2009 I'm reading they said the boat was anchored when the storm hit. How deep is the gulf 35 miles offshore? 40-50' I believe. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jackass Posted March 2, 2009 Share Posted March 2, 2009 Man...that is a mistake. Hopefully they are safe but why they would try to swim instead of waiting with the boat is beyond me. Let's hope that decision didnt cost them their lives. I would imagine one's instinct is to try to do something rather than just waiting Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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