A hero athlete died after jumping on a university gunman to try and stop his bloody rampage, eyewitnesses have revealed.

Riley Howell, 21, was killed when Trystan Terrell opened fire in a classroom at the University of North Carolina in Charlotte, USA, on Tuesday.

Both Howell and his classmate Ellis Parlier, 19, were shot dead during the attack by the 22-year-old drop out.

Gunfire broke out at around 5.45pm local time (9.45pm GMT) near the university's Kennedy Hall administrative building.

Police have now paid tribute to Riley saying he died trying to save others by jumping on the gunman.

Charlotte-Mecklenburg police Chief Kerr Putney described Riley as a hero and said his actions saved lives.

"You're either going to run or hide and shield or you're going to take the fight to the assailant," he said at a press conference.

"Having no place to run and hide, he did the last. But for his work, the assailant may not have been disarmed. Unfortunately, he gave his life in the process.

"His sacrifice saved lives."

His former soccer coach Josh Martin told The Citizen Times: "You can’t really put into words what a good human being he was.

"There aren’t words to describe how we’re all feeling. This is tragic."

The Rams soccer coach said he had been "crying his eyes out" over the shooting.

Riley's family also issued a heartbreaking statement in which they paid tribute to "a one of a kind guy".

They described him as a "big, muscular guy with a big heart".

"Riley was truly a one of a kind guy. He loved all things outdoors, adventure, and especially family," they said in a statement.

"He loved to work outside and when he worked, he did it with his hands and his heart. 

"He always was able to put others before himself and never hesitated to help anyone who needed it. He was friends with anyone and everyone."

The statement included references to things he loved including "his Lauren" and Star Wars.

"He was the kind of person who you knew would take care of you the moment you met him and he always did.

"He radiated love and always will. As a friend said, 'Beautiful souls like Riley are always with us in the way they made life more beautiful'."

After the shooting, Riley's girlfriend Lauren made frantic pleas for information as she tried to figure out what had happened to him. She was later told he had died.

Riley and Ellis died in the rampage and four other students, Drew Pescaro, 19, Sean Dehart, 20, Rami Alramatin, 20, and Emily Houpt, 23, were injured.

The motive for the shooting has not yet been revealed.

Terrell is in custody awaiting his first court appearance on murder and attempted murder charges.

He has been charged with two counts of murder and four counts of attempted murder.

He also faces four charges of assault with a deadly weapon and two counts for alleged firearm offences.

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