University of Memphis Student Fatally Shot

A University of Memphis football player was fatally shot on campus in what police believe was a targeted attack, and classes were canceled Monday as a precaution.

Taylor Bradford, 21, apparently was shot near a university housing complex about 9:45 p.m. Sunday and then crashed a car he was driving into a tree a short distance away on campus, officials said.

"We found him with a bullet wound to the body and the ambulance took him to the hospital where he was pronounced (dead)," said Roger Prewitt, a Memphis Police inspector.

Detectives investigating the shooting received reports of gunfire being heard in a parking lot of the housing complex about 200 yards from where Bradford was found, police spokeswoman Monique Martin said.

Homicide detectives were unsure of a motive for the shooting and had no suspects, she said. "That's all still under investigation," she said.

University president Shirley Raines said that witnesses told police they saw more than one person leaving the scene who could have been involved.

"This was an act directed specifically toward the victim and it was not a random act of violence," she said.

Residence halls in the surrounding area were closed to outsiders immediately, and residents were advised not to go outside. Students, faculty and staff were told by e-mail early Monday morning that classes were canceled.

In an e-mail alert to faculty, staff and students at 3:40 a.m. Monday, officials wrote that "the initial investigation indicates this was an act directed specifically toward the victim and was not a random act of violence."

The university decided to cancel classes Monday, although police believe the person or persons involved in the shooting left the campus immediately.

"We feel like the campus is safe, but we'd rather err on the safety than not," Gunther said.

Bradford, a 5-foot-11, 300-pound defensive lineman, was a junior who transferred to Memphis after two seasons at Samford University in Birmingham, Ala.

The Memphis Tigers host Marshall University on Tuesday night. A moment of silence was planned before the game.