Southern University's famous marching band, known as the Human Jukebox, suffered a terrible loss Tuesday night when two tuba players and a percussionist were killed in a crash in northwest Louisiana. Police say Broderick Moore, 19; Tyran Williams, 19; and Dylan Young, 21, were killed when they were hit by an 18-wheeler on the northbound shoulder of I-49 while they were changing a flat tire on their Jeep, WAFB reports. Clyde Gay, the truck's 62-year-old driver, was not injured. Louisiana State Police said Wednesday morning that the 1997 Freightliner that Gay was driving "drifted onto the northbound shoulder" for reasons that are "still under investigation," reports WBRZ. Police said the results of toxicology tests are pending.
The three students were on their way home to Texas for the Christmas break. "I am at a loss for words and utterly devastated to hear the news that three of my band members lost their lives in a vehicle collision Tuesday night," Kedric Taylor, Southern University's director of bands, said in a statement. "Tyran Williams, Dylan Young, and Broderick Moore were some of the most promising, humble and talented student musicians I’ve had the pleasure of instructing." The Baton Rouge, Louisiana, institution's band is one of the country's best-known marching bands and has performed at the Super Bowl six times. (More marching band stories.)