Texas student found dead hours after posting haunting devil trend video

Rice University is grieving the sudden death of 19-year-old student Claire Tracy, whose body was found at an apartment complex just two blocks from the Houston campus. The second-year undergraduate, originally from Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin, had joined the university in 2024 and quickly became known as a bright, athletic, and deeply thoughtful student.

The announcement of her passing came in a sombre statement from the university. The Dean of Undergraduates, Bridget K. Gorman, expressed devastating sadness while sharing that Claire had been a member of Wiess College, a former Rice soccer player, and a finance major with a close circle of friends. She described Claire as someone with a vibrant spirit and emphasised how profoundly her loss has affected the university community.

Her cause of death has not yet been publicly released, but online, concern has spiralled due to the emotional content she posted shortly before she died.



Hours before her passing, Claire uploaded a TikTok that has since left viewers shaken. The post used the viral sound from the “devil could not reach me” trend, a trend where people reveal something painful or unsettling that life has thrown at them.

The audio Claire paired with her video spoke in metaphorical but intense language, describing someone whose mind was “sharp, unfiltered” and who “saw too clearly and felt too deeply” until the weight of life felt unbearable. Viewers have interpreted the video as a cry for help.

In another clip, Claire said she felt like she was “going insane” and wanted to know whether anyone else experienced the same emotional spiral. She also opened up about walking alone late at night around campus because her depression had worsened and she was desperate to “feel something.”

There was more, a quieter but equally heartbreaking video about loneliness. She described being a “popular loner,” explaining that she often went to the gym alone for hours because her small number of friends were unavailable, and without exercise, she feared she would “go mentally insane.”

As tributes flood social media, many are devastated that Claire’s final posts carried such heavy emotional weight, signs that, in hindsight, feel painfully significant. Students at Rice University have spoken about how her death has shaken their sense of safety and mental health awareness on campus.

Her family, friends, and the university community are now left with grief, questions, and the haunting reality that a young life with immense talent, intelligence, and potential has ended far too soon.