DENTON, Texas — Denton Ryan defensive coordinator Aaron De La Torre has died, Denton Independent School District officials said Wednesday.
The circumstances surrounding his death were unknown Wednesday, but the news shocked the Denton Ryan community.
"The loss of Aaron De La Torre is a tragedy," Denton ISD officials said in a statement. "He was a husband, father, grandfather and friend to many. Please pray for those whose lives he impacted and the Ryan High School family as they navigate this sudden and difficult loss. We have reached out to Coach De La Torre’s family to let them know we will provide support during this unexpected loss, and they have asked us to respect their privacy."
De La Torre had coached for 17 years and spent his last seven with the Raiders. He previously was the head coach at Irving High School.
Family friend Chasity Torti and her husband have known Aaron and his wife for years. She watched him as a coach changing the lives of young people and their families.
"He touched so many lives. Kids who didn't have fathers, he was a father figure to them," said Chasity Torti. "He loved those kids as his own and they loved him just as much. The impact spreads really spread beyond his family and his friends."
His sudden death comes a week after the Hickory Creek Police Department closed its investigation into an alleged assault involving a Ryan High School football coach and a 12-year-old boy. The case initially came to light after a TikTok video implicated De La Torre as the coach involved.
Multiple sources have since confirmed to WFAA that De La Torre was the person implicated in the TikTok video
Hickory Creek police said its investigation into the alleged assault was closed after meeting with the boy's mother and conducting a "full case review." During that meeting, police said investigators showed the mother all available footage of her son's interactions with De La Torre, as well as all witness statements collected by police at the scene. After reviewing those videos and statements, the mother "decided that although she does not support the actions taken towards her son by an adult, she believes that no criminal activity occurred and chose not to press charges," police said.
De La Torre was a defensive tackle for Stephen F. Austin and had a brief NFL career before getting into coaching. He started his coaching career for his alma mater, then moved to Denton Ryan from 2009 to 2011. De La Torre left to be the head coach at Irving for six seasons from 2012 to 2017 but then returned to Denton Ryan as defensive coordinator.
“Any time you were around Aaron even as an adult, your own confidence just grew. He just had that impact to make you believe you could do anything. But he also had such a funny side and was goofy, always telling jokes," Torti said.
The Hickory Creek Police Department has confirmed to WFAA that it is not conducting an investigation into De La Torre's death. The Denton County Medical Examiner has not yet released any information relating to his death's cause.
A GoFundMe page has been started to help out De La Torre's family.
Torti shared that all the money raised will go directly to the coach's family.
"For me allowing his family to grieve and work through their process and not have to worry about the financial side of it was important. Aaron would have given the shirt off his back, so it's a no-brainer for everyone to step up and give at this time," Torti said.
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