UTEP tight end and former Texas A&M walk-on Luke Laufenberg succumbed to a rare form of cancer Thursday morning.

He was 21 years old.

Former Dallas Cowboys quarterback Babe Laufenberg, Luke’s father, announced Luke’s passing on Twitter.

“Today we lost a son, a brother, a friend, and a warrior,” Babe tweeted. “Have never seen a person battle like Luke Laufenberg, but he lost his fight with cancer. He was truly inspirational. The hole in our hearts will never be filled. You are my hero. RIP my sweet Luke. See you on the other side.”

A standout at Argyle (Texas) Liberty Christian, Luke initially committed to Arkansas as a preferred walk on, but shifted his interest to Texas A&M after the Aggies landed his high school teammate, quarterback Nick Starkel, per GigEm247’s Brian Perroni.

Starkel was originally committed to Oklahoma State, but swapped to the Aggies after the departures of Kyle Allen and Kyler Murray created a need for Texas A&M to go out and land a quarterback in the class. That meant Starkel, and his former teammate, arrived in College Station.

Luke never played at Texas A&M, as Perroni noted that, “He was a walk-on at a position that the previous staff did not utilize all that much. However, he was a popular player in the locker room.”

That lack of playing time led Luke to transfer to Mesa (Ariz.) Community College, where he played in six games, catching 10 passes for 100 yards during the 2017 season. But the day after that Christmas, doctors diagnosed Luke with Burkitt leukemia, a rare form of cancer.

According to Cancer.gov, Burkitt leukemia is a “rare” and “fast-growing” type of blood cancer, one that affects around 1,200 Americans per year. At one point, the 235-pound tight end saw his weight dip to 155 pounds.

And yet the initial five-month treatment was positive, with Babe tweeting on May 3, 2018 that his son was cancer free.

“Why are we smiling on a day when Jason Witten retires? Because this tight end was pronounced cancer free today!” Babe tweeted. “I can say I have never been more proud of anything in my life than the way @LukeLaufenberg battled his ass off. He has shown me what it means to compete.”

And Luke’s story was just starting; he hadn’t given up on his goal of playing college football. He sat out the 2018 season, then signed with UTEP on National Signing Day in February, with his National Letter of Intent the first one announced by the school.

"First off, thanks to all my doctors, nurses, and everyone else associated with Children's Medical Center Dallas," Luke said after picking the Miners. "Another huge thanks to all my friends and family for constantly checking in and visiting me. You all brightened up a lot of dark days for me."

Luke was set to play this season, on full scholarship, as a redshirt junior and expected to start for the Miners, according to CBS DFW. But in April he went home to be with his family, and doctors told Luke in July that his condition was terminal.