The father of a 16-year-old Stevens High School football player who collapsed and died Monday evening after a Raider's team camp says the school should not be blamed for his son's death.

Greg Gramberg referred Tuesday afternoon to an initial coroner's report that showed that his son, Ryan, had an enlarged heart. Gramberg said it would be wrong for people to imply that the Steven's athletic staff or school officials were somehow negligent in the way they ran the football team camp.

"The coaching staff - we feel like they did an excellent job in trying to save his life," Gramberg said. "It was a tragedy. We shouldn't make it more of a tragedy by trying to place any blame, because there wasn't any blame to place."

Gramberg said his son had just finished the opening session of a Steven's football camp Monday evening when he fell unconscious to the ground. Ryan Gramberg was treated at the scene and later pronounced dead at Rapid City Regional Hospital.

A brief report Tuesday from the Pennington County Coroner's Office said preliminary results of an autopsy "indicated some abnormalities associated with Ryan's heart." Further testing was planned to determine a specific cause of death.

Ryan's best friend, Kolton Emery, was down on one knee just a few feet in front of Ryan when his friend passed out on the Steven's football practice field.

"It was the end of practice, and we all took a knee to listen to coach," Emery said. "He just went down."

Emery said he turned to see his friend on the ground, as the coaching staff rushed to help and backed players away. It was a light work-out without football pads, as the team ran through some plays, and Ryan had not shown any signs of distress, Emery said.

"He was fine. He was laughing and high-fiving people," he said. "Then it just happened."

An ambulance crew from the Rapid City fire department responded about 8:20 p.m. Monday, treated Gramberg at the scene and took him to Rapid City Regional Hospital, where he was later pronounced dead.

Peter Wharton, superintendent of Rapid City Area Public Schools, said Tuesday that structured workouts at the football camp were canceled Tuesday but would resume Wednesday, July 16, with emphasis on celebrating Ryan Gramberg's life as the team resumes work toward the fall season.

"This is a tragedy, of course, and we extend our sympathy and support to Ryan's family," Wharton said. "He was a fine young man with a passion for life and a real love for football."

Wharton said he believed the camp was run appropriately and that the Stevens coaching staff responded as well as possible to Ryan's medical crisis, immediately beginning CPR and calling the emergency crew.

"I think they were thinking on their feet and did what they were trained to do until the emergency crew arrived," he said.

Hayden Hast, a sophomore quarterback at Stevens, said he saw Gramberg collapse.

"We were all in breakdowns just before practice ended. I remember coach talking. (Ryan) fell over. He groaned, and the coaches all had us move back," Hast said.

Although it was a warm day, with a high temperature of 90 earlier in Rapid City, the camp was held as it cooled in the early evening. Hast said there were a number of rest breaks and plenty of water available.

"It was a hot and humid day, but the coaches didn't take it too hard on us and gave us plenty of water breaks," Hast said.

Emery said Ryan Gramberg had not complained of any health problems, either at the camp on Monday or before that.

"He was working hard, going to the weight room, and really excited about starting football and playing this fall," Emery said. "I think he would have played a lot."

Greg and Sue Gramberg said they had not noticed any heart-related symptoms in their son. He was big, at 5 foot 11 and about 240 pounds, but always active in sports, including football, track and field and taekwondo, and apparently healthy, they said.

Emery said returning to the practice field would evoke difficult memories.

"It'll be tough on everybody," he said.

Wharton said school-system counselors and coaches were at Stevens High School on Tuesday to talk with players about the tragedy. He said a number of players took advantage of the sessions.

Kolton Emery's mother, Amy, said the players won't soon get over the loss of their friend and teammate right in front of them on the field.

"It's bizarre. We don't understand it," she said. "I'm sure all those boys will have that embedded in their mind forever."

Contact Kevin Woster at 394-8413 or kevin.woster@rapidcityjournal.com

Journal sports reporter Jeff Budlong contributed to this story.