Posted by The FatGuy in 
CLEARWATER, Florida (AFP) – A capsized boat with one person clinging to it has been found by the US Coast Guard during its search off the western Florida coast for four missing fishermen, two of them American football players, MSNBC reported Monday.
Nick Schuyler, who is reportedly awake and talking to his rescuers at Tampa General, was the man found on the capsized vessel.
The report quoted Coast Guard officials as saying the boat, missing in rough seas since early Sunday morning, had been located with one person on board.
Detroit Lions defensive end Corey Smith and Oakland Raiders linebacker Marquis Cooper were among those reported missing by the Coast Guard.
Officials said that a 21-foot fishing boat left Clearwater at approximately 6:30 am local time on Saturday and did not return at its scheduled time later in the day.
The boat was reported missing at about 1:30 am Sunday. Officials stated that gulf waters were “extremely choppy” and believed that the boat is “in distress.”
Wind gusts up to 72 kilometres per hour (45 mph) and waves reaching up to 10 feet high had hampered the search, according to the Coast Guard.
Smith and Cooper were teammates with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers during the 2004 season and former college teammates at the nearby University of South Florida.
Smith, 29, appeared in 12 games with the Lions this past season, his seventh in the NFL.
Cooper, 26, played in eight games with the Raiders last year. He has played in 42 career games over parts of five seasons with seven different teams.
