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CAMP FOSTER, Okinawa — A Special Forces soldier assigned to Torii Station on Okinawa died in combat during a deployment to Afghanistan, the Department of Defense announced Wednesday.

Staff Sgt. Jeremie S. Border, 28, of Mesquite, Texas, and a fellow soldier from Fort Bragg, Staff Sgt. Jonathan Schmidt, were killed by small-arms fire Saturday when enemy forces attacked their unit at Batur Village in eastern Afghanistan, the DOD said.

Border was a Green Beret and had been a state football champion in high school, according to the Dallas Morning News. He also played four years of college football at McMurry University in Abilene, Texas, and graduated in 2006, the university said in a condolence message. The DOD said he was assigned to the 1st Special Forces Group at Torii Station, a small Army base on central Okinawa.

“The kid was the ultimate team player. He optimized everything you would want a kid to do,” Robbie Robinson, head coach at Border’s high school, told the Dallas newspaper. “In this ‘me’ generation, he was a throwback, always willing to sacrifice for his team.”

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