Friends and fans are mourning this week the untimely death of former University of Notre Dame player Zac Plantz. 

Plantz, who graduated in the spring of 2015, was a charismatic and emotional leader of the Irish during his tenure there.

He picked up the game with Lincoln Way in the Chicago area, and is one of three Plantz brothers, along with Tyler and Logan, to play rugby at Notre Dame. Plantz, who had been working as the Senior Policy Director to Illinois Congressman Dan Lipinski, died Thursday, Thanksgiving Day, in a car crash in Naples, Fla. According to the Naples Daily News, a truck was making a U-turn and Plantz's car collided with it early on the morning of November 26, and was pronounced dead at the scene. He was 27.

A smart, ambitious man, Plantz remained heavily involved in the game of rugby that he loved so much.

In a statement, the Fighting Irish Rugby Club said in part: "whether Zac was challenging a teammate or pushing himself, he always had the best interest of the team at heart. Zac poured himself into the club as he did with anything he was passionate about, with his whole heart. He cared deeply for his teammates and friends, the club he led and the University he represented. Zac was a gifted athlete and a fierce competitor on the field, but it was the sense of community that the rugby club provided that he loved so much. The rugby club was very special to Zac and meant the world to him during his time at Notre Dame and after his time in South Bend." 

Plantz joined the Kraken RFC team after graduation— a team of former Notre Dame players that plays and tours around the country. He eventually took on some of the leadership roles with the club.

During this month, Plantz had been using Movember to raise money for men's health issues, specifically mental health, suicide prevention, and prostate and testicular health. His goal was to raise $1,000, and had surpassed that. After his death, his campaign remained and has now topped $100,000, making his campaign one of the most successful in November campaigns in the world. You can access that fundraising campaign here>>

Congressman Lipinski also remembered his former aide in a statement: "After I brought Zac into my campaign last year, I quickly learned what a gifted young man he was and made him my Campaign Manager. He was a proud Notre Dame graduate who had a contagious energy about him that lifted up those who interacted with him. He was smart, thoughtful, respectful, and charismatic."

Zac Plantz is has two brothers, Tyler (Notre Dame Class of 2014) and Logan (Class of 2018) as well as a sister, Abrielle, mother Laura, and father Ron.