Cox, a senior systems analyst with Manatee County, was known in the area as a youth football coach with the Manatee Mustang Sports Academy for 20 years, reported the Bradenton Herald. The organization said on Facebook that Cox “personified dedication and selflessness,” and was “a father to the fatherless, a mentor to all, a hero in every aspect of the meaning, and a legend no less.” Reggie Bellamy, the organization’s commissioner, told the Herald that Cox impacted generations of young athletes.