Report: Football coach shielded students from bullets in Florida shooting

Aaron Feis, an assistant football coach who was among the 17 people shot and killed Wednesday when a gunman opened fire at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Florida, is being hailed as a hero in the aftermath of the shooting.

According to witnesses, Feis, who also worked as a security guard at the school, stepped in front of students to shield them from bullets.

The football team's Twitter account confirmed Feis' death early Thursday morning.

Marjory Stoneman Douglas football coach Willis May told David Furones of the Sun-Sentinel he heard directly from a student that Feis jumped between her and the shooter and pushed her out of the line of fire.

"Big ol' teddy bear," May said of Feis. "Hardcore - he coached hard. Real good line. He did a great job with the (offensive) line. He took pride with working with those guys. Loyalty - I trusted him. He had my back. He worked hard. Just a good man. Loved his family. Loved his brother - just an excellent family man."

May said he heard Feis respond to the original call about the shooting on the school's security radio walkie-talkies. Someone asked if the sounds they heard were firecrackers.

"I heard Aaron say: 'No, that is not firecrackers,'" May recalled. "That's the last I heard of him."