Naman Shrestha
In the episode titled ‘Until Parents Get Involved’ of Investigation Discovery’s ‘Murder Under the Friday Night Lights,’ the focus is on the brutal murder case of a youth football coach named Michael Hickmon in the summer of 2022. When the police began investigating the case, witnesses pointed them to the perpetrator, who was a relative of a former NFL player. Featuring exclusive and insightful interviews with the victim’s family and friends, the audience gets a detailed account of the tragedy and the investigation that followed.
Michael Hickmon Died While Doing What He Loved to Do
Michael Frank Hickmon was born on March 17, 1979, in Dallas, Texas, and raised among his siblings, including his oldest sister Ciciely Hickmon. Apart from academics, he excelled in football at his high school. His grit and talent also allowed him to play for the University of North Texas, where he earned his higher education. His passion for the sport was evident as he became a coach to stay as close to the field as possible. His leadership and mentorship helped young players gain extra determination to be able to do their best on the field. He was nicknamed a “Gentle Giant” because of his huge stature and his soft and kind nature.
Besides his coaching career, Michael also prioritized his family, which included his wife, Kenyetta Hickmon, their two adorable daughters, a son, and three grandchildren. His paths crossed with the love of his life at the North Texas campus back in 1999 when the latter was a volleyball player. Together, they had built a loving and supportive household for their beautiful family. Being a doting family man, he was highly involved in his children’s lives and served as their biggest cheerleader. He was the youth coach of his son’s football team, the Pee Wee Football team of the Dragon Elite Academy Dragons, and had plenty of things to look forward to. However, fate had other ideas.
On August 13, 2022, at his 9-year-old son’s football match, a fight broke out on the field, amidst which 43-year-old Michael was shot multiple times. When the police arrived at the scene of the crime, they inspected his body and learned that he had been shot in the best, back, and forearm. He was immediately rushed to the hospital for treatment but later succumbed to the fatal injuries, while his wife hoped for his recovery in the waiting room. Following his tragic death, the family released a statement: “Our family is grieving. Right now, we don’t see an end to our grief. We miss him immensely. We always will. We will love him forever.” Meanwhile, the investigators launched a homicide investigation and began looking for the perpetrator.
A Disagreement During His Son’s Match Led to Michael Hickmon’s Tragic Demise
After being done with the inspection of the crime scene, the police started talking to the people who witnessed the shooting incident during the youth football match. According to the witnesses, an intense argument broke out between the coaches and the officials of the match over a few calls made by the referees. Michael Hickman’s team was playing against a team affiliated with Yaqub Talib and a former NFL cornerback and five-time Pro Bowler named Aqib Talib. When Michael tried to pick up the football and someone from the opposition kicked it away instead, a huge fight broke out.
During the commotion, 39-year-old Yaqub reportedly pulled out a semiautomatic handgun and shot Michael multiple times before fleeing the scene with the weapon. When the investigators dug deep into the suspect’s past, they found out that he already had plenty of run-ins with the law in the past, including charges of drug possession, abandoning a child/negligence, unlawful possession of a weapon by a felon, and aggravated assault using a deadly weapon. In light of the witnesses’ testimonies, the police issued an arrest warrant in his name as he was deemed the prime suspect in the case.
A couple of days after the shooting incident, on August 15, the suspect surrendered himself to the police and was charged with first-degree murder of Michael Hickmon. The accused’s attorney issued a statement following Yaqub’s surrender: “Mr. Talib regrets the tragic loss of life but went ahead and turned himself into the law this morning (Monday) so his side of the story could be told.” He elaborated, “added: “(Talib) feels terrible the whole thing happened. But … I think there’s some heavy defensive overtones to what happened out there on that playing field. And in time, that’ll all come out.”
Yaqub Talib is Incarcerated at a Texas Prison Facility Today
About a month later, in September 2022, Yaqub Talib was officially indicted on the murder charge by a grand jury. Less than a year after the shooting death of Michael Hickmon, on July 20, 2023, the perpetrator pleaded guilty to the charges against him ahead of his trial. A couple of weeks later, on August 7, 2023, his official sentencing took place. By the end, he was sentenced to 37 years in prison for murdering the 43-year-old youth football coach Michael. After the sentencing, the victim’s loved ones took the stand one by one and addressed the killer.
Kenyetta Hickmon, Michael’s wife, opened up about how the loss of his husband transformed her life for the worse. She said, “What do you tell a 9-year-old who watched a person gunned down who they thought was the strongest person in the world? You killed innocence hopes, dreams, not just my kids, but 30-40 other little kids there.” As for Michael’s sister, Ciciely Hickmon, she asked why Yaqub had a gun in his possession at the youth game, as he was not allowed to carry a gun at all due to his prior indictments. Currently, Yaqub Talib is serving his sentence at the O. B. Ellis Unit in Huntsville, Texas. While his parole eligibility date is scheduled for 2042, his release date is projected for 2060.
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