MOORESVILLE, N.C. (QUEEN CITY NEWS) – Friends and family are remembering Robert Farley, the father of an NFL player killed in a house explosion in Mooresville late Monday night.

On Wednesday, Tennessee Titans player Caleb Farley was back at the home he bought for his father, digging through debris and helping with the clean-up.

Robert Farley lived in Mooresville but worked at a barbershop in Newton, near where he grew up in Maiden, a small town big on football.

“There’s very few people that come through Maiden that someone’s not trying to nudge them to play football; it’s known as the biggest little football town in the world for a reason,” said Danny Hipps, a childhood friend of Robert Farley.

Caleb Farley is one reason people know Maiden High School football. But before the Tennessee Titans cornerback played at Maiden, his father, Robert Farley, played the same position at the high school.

“I remember him telling one of his teammates, ‘This is a tough one to take, but I love you, man, I love you forever,” said Hipps.

Hipps grew up with Robert Farley. As he grew older, Hipps realized it wasn’t just Robert’s skills on the football field that would endure.

“Robert was a great father to Caleb and a straight up guy, very straight up, and I think any parent’s legacy really should be their kids,” said Hipps.

Caleb is left grieving his father now, sifting through the rubble of the house explosion that killed his dad.

“My father was a stand-up guy, he was a stand-up-guy, he raised me to be a stand-up-guy,” sad Caleb Farley in an interview with Queen City News Tuesday.

The barbershop in Newton that Robert started with his brother is closed for the day while the family mourns.

“We grew up, we didn’t have much of nothing, but we had each other,” said Elijah Farley, Robert’s brother.

Elijah says his brother left a different type of work and went to barber school to help him start a business.

“He felt so sorry for me that he then turned around and went to barber school so that he could come rescue me and help me and take some of the weight off my shoulders,” said Elijah.

Robert was a brother, a father, and a protector.

“Many people don’t show love towards people. When Robert does stuff, he does it from the kindness of his heart, so we’re really going to miss him,” said Lemonte Ramseur, a barber who worked at Farley’s shop.