An unspeakable tragedy has hit the BYU football program and its extended family.
According to the Salt Lake Tribune, the three-year-old daughter of Cougars running backs coach Reno Mahe is “fighting for her life” following an accident in their home Tuesday morning. One of Mahe’s seven children, Elsie, was found by a friend hanging from a set of blinds with the cord wrapped around her neck. Mahe’s wife Sunny, a former BYU volleyball player, performed CPR and the little girl was ultimately life-flighted to a Salt Lake City hospital.
“I wanna thank everyone for the their prayers and love!” Reno Mahe wrote on his Facebook page. “We have some awesome family and friends who are always there for us. They’ve created a group to give u more updates on Elsie’s situation. We won’t know more about her situation for another 24-48 hours.”
A family friend, Jeremy Roberts, has set up a GoFundMe account for the family.
On the Mahe Update Facebook page mentioned by the Cougars assistant, one friend wrote that “Elsie’s twitches have diminished, which is an improvement. She is exhibiting some positive neurological responses to touch. Her breathing is still a concern. Please keep prayers coming.”
Elsie had been sedated and was breathing with the help of a respirator. She had expected to remain sedated for at least another 24 hours; however, there appears to have been somewhat of a positive development on that front.
“Elsie was taken out of sedation and she began breathing on her own,” Roberts wrote on the GoFundMe page around noon ET today. “Reno said she’s using a little bit of the ventilator to help her breath. She responded to a finger pinch and lifted her knee a bit. This all seemed very encouraging, but the doctors didn’t lead on to being too excited yet. Please keep the prayers coming. Faith in numbers can bring on miracles!”
Mahe, who played his college football for the Cougars, is in his second season at his alma mater. Our thoughts and prayers go out to the coach and his entire family during this difficult time.