MONTGOMERY, Ala. — Two Faulkner University football players have been killed in a car accident in southern Alabama.

The university said sophomore offensive linemen Teirson Hollis and Ryne Wilhite died instantly when their car hit an 18-wheeler on a highway Tuesday in Maplesville, about 50 miles southeast of Montgomery.

The players were returning to the university in Montgomery after visiting a friend in Tuscaloosa.

Hollis had been with the program since it started in 2007. Wilhite played last season for Northeast Mississippi Community College.

Faulkner is a private, Christian liberal arts university of about 3,000 students that competes in Division III.

Faulkner coach Gregg Baker called the players "great kids, two wonderful Christian young men."