GAINESVILLE — Matt Patchan, the former Armwood All-American and current Florida defensive lineman, is recovering from a gunshot wound in his shoulder after he was shot by an unknown man Friday night at Sadie Park in Brandon.
Patchan's former Armwood teammate Wesley Skiffington was shot as well.
Patchan and Skiffington were at the park in a crowd of people who were standing around talking at 9:58 p.m. Friday when a man pulled a handgun from his waistband and started shooting toward the crowd, Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office spokeswoman Debbie Carter said.
Patchan was hit in the upper left shoulder, Wesley in his right foot. Both were taken to University Community Hospital in Tampa for treatment, Carter said.
Florida coach Urban Meyer issued a statement Monday morning confirming that Patchan was shot but that his injuries were not life-threatening.
"Matt Patchan was a gunshot victim Friday night at a Tampa-area park," Meyer said in the statement. "He was a bystander … and is expected to fully recover in three weeks."
Reached by phone Monday morning, Patchan declined to comment. "I've gotta go; I can't talk about it," he said.
According to sheriff's reports, the shooter is a black man who is 6 feet to 6 feet 4 and 200 to 220 pounds. He fled in a vehicle of unknown make and model.
Armwood coach Sean Callahan said Monday that he had talked with Patchan and that "he's fine."
"I don't know what he was doing there or why they were there," Callahan said. "I don't know all the details. I just know he went to the hospital. They left (the bullet) in. It's not serious. It's in the soft tissue."
Patchan is expected to get further treatment at Shands at the University of Florida.
The 6-foot-7, 265-pound freshman enrolled early at Florida in January after graduating from Armwood in December.
Recruited as an offensive lineman, he was moved to the defensive line during spring practice and is expected to be a major contributor this fall.
Times staff writers Keith Niebuhr and Izzy Gould contributed to this report.
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