NASHVILLE, Tenn. —Titans kicker Ryan Succop didn't hesitate when he heard the folks at Vanderbilt University were organizing an effort to help those impacted by the historic flooding in South Carolina.
Succop loaded up his Ford F-150 truck with a half-dozen cases of bottled water and headed to the Vanderbilt's football stadium following a meeting on Thursday morning. After practice on Thursday, he was considering going back again.
Succop, who's from Hickory, N.C., played in 50 games at the University of South Carolina before being drafted by the Chiefs in 2009. He's currently in his second season with the Titans.
"It's awesome the people at Vanderbilt care about the people in South Carolina, and their thoughts and prayers are certainly with those people,'' Succop said. "There's a lot of people affected by the flooding. Any time you have a once in a thousand year flood there's a lot of people that need help and it's awesome the people of Nashville are coming together to help."
Succop met Vanderbilt baseball coach Tim Corbin, among others, while dropping off the water. In an effort to provide support to the flood relief efforts in Columbia, S.C., and the University of South Carolina, Vanderbilt held a drive to collect and transport water and new generators to those in need.
At least 17 people in South Carolina and North Carolina have died in the storm. Earlier this week, the University of South Carolina announced it was moving Saturday's game against No. 7 LSU to Baton Rouge, Louisiana. University officials said holding the game in Columbia would have put too much stress on infrastructure already compromised by the storm.
The event began at 7 a.m. Thursday and runs through 7 p.m. on Vanderbilt's campus.
"I know some people that have had their house flooded. One of my teammates at South Carolina, I believe the house his parents live in was completely under water,'' Succop said. "There's obviously a lot of people in need and it's cool to be able to help out in the small way that we can."
