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UConn Says Goodbye to "Jazz"

A probable cause hearing has been set for the murder suspect

By Amanda Raus

| Friday, Nov 13, 2009 | Updated 12:40 PM EDT

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Students, faculty and staff remember Jasper Howard at a memorial service Thursday.

Almost four weeks after his death, the UConn community came together for another memorial service for slain football player Jasper Howard and the man accused of killing him appeared in court.

John Lomax, 21, of Bloomfield, appeared briefly Friday in Rockville Superior Court and a judge scheduled the probable cause hearing for Dec. 17. During the hearing, a judge will decide whether there's enough evidence for prosecutors to take the case to trial.

UConn coach Randy Edsall and Howard's mother and stepfather attended Friday's hearing.

"I have never seen any one person or any singular event have more impact on this university than what we experienced," Jeffrey Hathaway, UConn's athletic director, said on Thursday night.

At the service, which was held in the Jorgensen Auditorium, students, teachers and coaches took turns at the microphone, sharing stories of the man affectionately called Jazz.

"Every morning after the games, we'd always be on the computer looking for pictures of ourselves, and Jazz would be like, I know they got a picture of me, man," said Kashif Moore, one of Howard's teammates.

They shared the school memories with Howard's family, who flew up from Florida to attend the service. Football Coach Randy Edsall presented them with gifts he had received. One was a letter from a West Virginia father whose son was touched by Jazz's story. Another was a flag that had been flown in Iraq in Jazz's honor. Edsall also presented the family with Jazz's "number six" and told everyone the young man's memory lives on.

"I can already see Jasper rubbing off on all of them. I see the smile, I see the laughs, I see, especially with the players, a little big of that swagger," said Edsall.

That was important for his friends and family to hear.

"To get closure for Jasper. To just say bye, pay our respects," said Lorin Dixon, a member of the UConn women's basketball team.

"I know he would want us to move on. Like Coach Edsall has said, he would want us to move on," said Jacquie Fernandes, another member of the basketball team.

Coach Edsall also said no player will wear Howard's number until after the day Howard was supposed to graduate. After that, the person who will wear number six will have to be someone special.