NFL Player Shot In Cheltenham

CHELTENHAM, Pa. - A National Football League player and Philadelphia native is hospitalized after being shot in Montgomery County.

Police said 23-year-old Curtis Brinkley, a 2003 West Catholic High School graduate, was shot twice while in his car on Spring Avenue in Cheltenham Township around midnight by a gunman who escaped.

He was taken to Albert Einstein Medical Center where he is listed in stable condition.

"I'm lost for words. I'm totally lost for words...My grandson didn't deserve this. He's worked exceptionally hard, but he's overcome a lot,“ says Margie Cason, Brinkley's grandmother.

Brinkley, who plays running back, had just signed with the San Diego Chargers after going undrafted and was set to start training camp later this month.

"I just thank and praise God that he wasn't killed and he's still alive,” says Cason continues. "He's going through a couple of injuries right now, but, hopefully, just like all the other ones that he's endured in the past, he'll be able to overcome them."

Brinkley holds the record for the most rushing yards in the Philadelphia's prep school history.

At 12:02 a.m. Friday, a police officer reported hearing gunshots in the area of Ashbourne Road and Spring Avenue.

While investigating, the officer came upon witnesses who said a shooting had occurred in the 7700 block of Spring Avenue.

Investigation revealed that Brinkley was stopped in his vehicle near the intersection of Spring Avenue and Ashbourne Road when a gunman approached and fired a handgun multiple times. Brinkley fled the scene to a place of safety, where police said they responded and transported him to the hospital.

"Absolute shock...You know, he also had desire and hunger," says Brian Fluck, who coached Brinkley at West Catholic High. "He would take a hit, he would give a hit, he would lower the shoulder. He would do anything to win a game."

Witnesses described the shooter as a light-complexion black male of medium height and build, last seen wearing a white T-shirt and blue jeans. Police said he fled to a waiting vehicle that had been parked on an adjacent street, leaving the scene immediately after the shooting.

Brinkley's coach says doctors told him it would take 6 to 8 weeks to recover from the gunshot wounds. His coach believes Brinkley will attend the Chargers training camp to learn the playbook while he recovers.

Anyone with information on this shooting is asked to call Cheltenham Township Police at 215-885-1600.