Devyn Reiley, the daughter of two-time Super Bowl champion Bruce Collie, sadly lost her life this past weekend
during an airshow when the aircraft she was piloting fell into Wisconsin’s Lake Winnebago.
Authorities said that at approximately nine in the morning on Sunday, Reiley’s World War II-era T-6 Texan crashed
into the water while it was taking part in the AirVenture Oshkosh 2023 event.
Although the cause of the accident is unknown, NBC 26 was informed by a witness that the airplane started
“spinning” before it crashed into the lake.
“At first, I thought they were playing a trick,” the witness continued.
Authorities claimed that a 20-year-old guy was among the other victims on board the aircraft.
The NTSB is looking into the situation.
On Sunday night, Collie—who shared the 1980s Super Bowl XXIII and XXIV championship with Joe Montana—
seemed to address the tragedy on his Facebook page, saying, “I trust You my King.. ALL THINGS to work together
for good.” Additionally, he uploaded two pictures of Reiley inside a cockpit.
Collie was “so proud” of Reiley, expressing his admiration for her love of flying in a social media post just a few days
before the disaster.
“God is so cool to give her a family that is ALL aviation…” Collie composed. “thank you Reiley’s for being the family
that she was destined for…”
Collie was selected by the 49ers in the 1985 NFL Draft, a mere few rounds after Jerry Rice was chosen by the same
team. Before concluding his career in Philadelphia, he played for San Francisco for five seasons, starting thirty-four
of those games. He has dabbled in aircraft and other commercial endeavors after retiring.
