UPDATE 8-14-09 5:42 pm.
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A former FSU ROTC member has been killed in the line of duty, making him the second cadet from Florida State to pay the ultimate sacrifice.

The United States Army has confirmed that 28-year-old Army Captain John Tinsley died WednesdayAugust 12th in Southern Afghanistan after a roadside bomb exploded near his vehicle.

This was Tinsley's second deployment, with his most recent tour beginning July 2009..

FSU President T-K Wetherell released this statement this afternoon, saying: "We owe so much to the heroism of Captain Tinsley, Captain Scott Speicher and all of the many Florida State men and women who have sacrificed and served this nation."

The other FSU cadet that paid the ultimate sacrifice was Colonel William Wesley Wood who was killed in the line of duty on October 27, 2005.

Wood was from Panama City, Florida where but later attended Florida State University and the university's ROTC Program.

At the time of his death, Wood was the highest-ranking American casualty of the Iraq conflict, according to the Pentagon.

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United States Army Special Operations Command Press Release:

Captain John Tinsley, 28, was killed Aug. 12 while conducting a mounted patrol in the Oruzgan Province, Afghanistan, in support of combat operations while serving with Company B, 2nd Battalion, 7th Special Forces Group (Airborne).

He deployed in support of Operation Enduring Freedom in July 2009 as a member of the Combined Joint Special Operations Task Force – Afghanistan.

This was his second deployment in support of the War on Terror and first deployment to Afghanistan. He was a Special Forces Operational Detachment- Alpha team commander.

Tinsley was a native of New Jersey, and was commissioned in August 2002 after graduation from Florida State University, Tallahassee, Florida.

He was assigned to the 1st Bn., 12th Infantry Regiment, 4th Infantry Division at Fort Carson, Colo. He was then later assigned to the 1st Bn., 3rd Infantry Regiment at Fort Myer, Va. as a member of the “Old Guard” in 2004; before beginning the Special Forces Qualification Course Sept. 2007 and earning the coveted “Green Beret” in March 2009.

Tinsley’s military education includes the Bradley Infantry Fighting Vehicle Commander’s Course, Infantry Officer Basic Course, Survival, Evasion, Resistance and Escape Course, Basic Airborne Course, Ranger Course, and Special Forces Qualification Course.

Tinsley is survived by his wife, Emily, and daughter, Isabella, of Fayetteville, N.C.; mother Debra, and father John Tinsley, of Jacksonville, Fla.

FSU's response:
"The Florida State University community joins Capt. Tinsley's family,
friends and colleagues in mourning his loss," said FSU President T.K.
Wetherell. "His courage in choosing to defend his country stands as
an example for all of us. We owe so much to the heroism of Capt.
Tinsley, Capt. Scott Speicher and all of the many Florida State men
and women who have sacrificed and served this nation."