DENVER -- A Coloradan was among three soldiers killed in Iraq when a bomb exploded near their Humvee, the Pentagon said Friday.

Pfc. Tyler R. MacKenzie, 20, of Evans was killed Wednesday morning near Baghdad, the military said.

MacKenzie was stationed at Camp Striker in Iraq and is the first Weld County soldier to die in the Iraq war. He is the son of Julie and David MacKenzie of Evans and was a 2003 graduate of Greeley West High School, where he played football for four years.

Mackenzie, who was single, had joined the Army in January, following in the military tradition of his family, which included his father serving in the Army and two grandfathers who served in the Navy, his mother told the Greeley Tribune.

"He knew that's what he wanted to do," Julie MacKenzie told the newspaper. "He wanted to go into the Army and serve his country. He wanted to help like his forefathers had helped."

She told the paper that she was just beginning to write an e-mail to her son when two Army majors appeared at her door Wednesday night.

"I actually saw the female major standing there, and I thought for a minute that they were there to support us, check on us. Then I looked at them and no one said anything and I knew. I kept saying, 'No. You made a mistake. You made a mistake,'" she said.

Tyler, a 6-foot-7-inch tall man described as a gentle giant, earned the nickname of T-Mac in school. His sister, Nicole, nicknamed him "Monkey," because as children, they used to climb in the rafters of their unfinished basement. She recalled his sense of humor as he later would turn the music up in the car on their way to 7-Eleven for a Slurpee.

"We used to bob our heads side to side like the movie, 'A Night at the Roxbury,' " she said. "I'll miss my monkey."

Tyler worked at the family business, MacKenzie Manufacturing, and also as a custodian for the school district before he enlisted.

Also killed in Wednesday's blast were Spc. Joshua J. Munger, 22, of Maysville, Mo., and Spc. Benjamin A. Smith, 21, of Hudson, Wis.

All three soldiers were assigned to the 1st Battalion, 502nd Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division, Fort Campbell, Ky.

Munger, who entered the Army in 2002, is survived by his wife, Alysha, and an 11-month-old son, Colton.

Smith joined in 2003. He was single.

Lenore Smith said her son e-mailed his older brother Tuesday, after news of the earlier deaths, to reassure the family he had not been hurt, according to The Leaf-Chronicle of Clarksville, Tenn.

"He lived life large and loved new adventures," she said of her son Friday night in a telephone interview from Hudson with The Leaf-Chronicle.

Smith enlisted in the Army after graduating from high school, his mother said.

"We are very proud of him and the life path he chose," she said.

The Army said memorial services were planned in Iraq.

This was the second such incident in the last week for the 101st Airborne. Four soldiers from the 502nd died Monday, following a similar explosion.

Earlier on Friday, Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., praised the 101st's bravery in a Senate speech. He said continuing the war would show respect for the deaths of Fort Campbell soldiers.

"My heart goes out to the families of these brave heroes. I believe the best way we can respect their memories is to finish their mission in Iraq with honor," McConnell said.

MacKenzie's mother agreed.

"This is not an unjust war ... The public is misinformed about the war. Tyler and all the soldiers out there know that it's right. They are helping. I will always be proud of him," she told the Tribune. "They're doing a job and can't stop until the job is done. If they pull out, Tyler and the other deaths would come across as worthless. This is America and we're not like that. We don't cut and run."

To send condolences to MacKenzie's family, see the Greeley Tribune's online memorial.