Family of Brian Battie provides update on Auburn RB following shooting incident in Florida

Auburn running back Brian Battie continues to recover in a Florida intensive care unit after being shot in May, but his family shared a promising update on his condition on Wednesday.

According to a GoFundMe update from Battie’s godmother, he began to show movement in his left side and then, eventually, his right side on Saturday. He’s also recently been taken off a ventilator and had a tracheotomy.

“Brian is still currently in the ICU but we’re fortunate to share that on Saturday, Brian was able to give a ‘thumbs up’ to his mom with his left hand and showed movement in his left leg,” The GoFundMe reads. “The right side of his body had not shown any sign of movement until two days ago, by the grace of God, Brian was able to move his right knee and leg. This news comes as a miracle, but Brian is a fight and always has been. Brian did have the ventilator removed this morning and needed a tracheotomy. Brian has a long journey ahead of him and the Battie Family continues to need everyone’s support and prayers as they are still grieving the loss of Pooh, while praying Brian’s recovery keeps going in a positive direction. We thank everyone for all of the support, generosity, and prayers that have blessed the Battie family thus far and we pray that it continues to lift them up through [this] unimaginable tragedy.”

Auburn head coach Hugh Freeze addressed Battie’s condition briefly at SEC spring meetings in late May.

“He’s getting better,” Freeze said according to Richard Silvia of the Montgomery Adviser. “Honor the family, I don’t want to go into too many things. But they appreciate all the prayers, for sure. It’s been a difficult time for the whole family, but he seems to be getting better each day.”

The shooting occurred a little more than a week ago in Battie’s hometown of Sarasota, Florida. His brother, Tommie Battie IV, was pronounced dead at the scene and four others were injured.

Brian Battie is gearing up for his second season at Auburn after transferring from USF. Last year, he served as the Tigers’ primary kickoff returner, totaling 645 return yards on 28 attempts as a junior. As part of the running game, Battie ran for 227 yards and a touchdown while adding 52 receiving yards in the passing game.

Battie spent three years at USF before arriving at Auburn and turned in his best season in 2022. He was the Bulls’ leading rusher with 1,185 yards and eight touchdowns, and he got involved in the passing game with 14 receptions for 91 yards.

Battie played high school football at Sarasota High School (Fla.), where he was a three-star prospect. He was the No. 1,590 overall recruit in the 2020 cycle, according to the On3 Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies.

Man who shot Brian Battie, others surrenders to police

According to WWSB in Sarasota, a person has turned himself in to police regarding the shooting of Auburn running back Brian Battie. The man has been identified as Darryl Brookings, with his lawyer confirming the news.

No specific charges have been placed on Brooking yet. Additionally, investigators are still working to see if there was a motive.

“A person has turned himself in to authorities in connection with a shooting that claimed the life of a former Braden River football player and injured his brother, a current Auburn football player,” the report from WWSB said.

“Darryl Brookins has turned himself into Sarasota County deputies, his attorney confirms to ABC7.”

Tommie Battie IV, who is Brian’s brother, was pronounced dead at the scene on Saturday. The incident occurred in Sarasota around 3:30 a.m. local time at the Tallywood Centre Plaza. Both of them are originally from Sarasota, attending Sarasota High School and Brian graduating in 2020.

On3’s Chandler Vessels contributed to this report.