The World of Football

Football Deaths in 2020

by Randy Snow

Original to www.theworldoffootball.com, Monday, January 4, 2021

Once again, we offer our annual compilation of football players, coaches and other football luminaries who passed away during 2020. Their contributions should always be remembered.

This year’s list of football deaths highlights 139 individuals including 11 members of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, 11 members of the College Football Hall of Fame and four members of the Canadian Football Hall of Fame.

But this past year, things were very different. It was filled with more loss than there should have been. While we honor those from the world of football, we acknowledge the fact that the world also lost so many people due to the COVID-19 global pandemic of 2020. Family members, friends, acquittances, co-workers and more. Please keep that in mind as you peruse this list of football death in 2020. Some died as a result of COVID-19.

January 1 – Les Josephson, a running back in the NFL for 11 seasons, dies at the age of 77. Josephson played college football at Division II Augustana College. He signed as a free agent with the Dallas Cowboys in 1964, but was traded to the Los Angeles Rams during training camp. He played for the Rams from 1964-1974. His nickname was the “Blonde Bull” because of his blonde hair and his hard-running style. After his playing career was over, he became a sportscaster and actor. Josephson was Warren Beatty’s double as the LA Rams quarterback in the 1978 movie, “Heaven Can Wait.” He was also a technical consultant on the 1976 Disney movie, “Gus” and appeared in an episode of the TV show, “Police Woman.” Josephson also spent 20 years as a college football radio color analyst for the Arizona Wildcats.

January 1 – Doug Hart, a cornerback in the NFL for eight seasons, dies at the age of 80. Hart played college football at Texas Arlington and signed with the St. Louis Cardinals in 1963 as a rookie free agent. However, he was cut by the Cardinals in training camp and then signed with the Green Bay Packers. He spent the 1963 season on the Packers’ taxi squad, which is today known as the practice squad. Hart played for the Packers from 1964-1971 and won three straight NFL titles as well as Super Bowls I and II.

January 2 – Houston Hogg, one of the first African-Americans to break the color barrier in the Southeastern Conference, dies at the age of 71. Hogg played college football at Kentucky from 1967-1970. He was a running back and lettered on the football team in 1969 and 1970. The university unveiled a statue of Hogg and three of his team mates in September 2016 at Kroger Field. The school named Hogg an honorary captain for the 2019 season opener against Toledo and recognized him on the field during the game for his role in integrating the SEC.

January 2 – Sam Wyche, a head coach in the NFL for 12 years, dies at the age of 74. Wyche played college football at Furman. He signed with the Cincinnati Bengals in 1968 and played quarterback for three seasons through 1970. He then played for the Washington Redskins in 1971 and 1972, the Detroit Lions in 1973 and the St. Louis Cardinals in 1976. Wyche then went into coaching. He started out as the quarterback’s coach of the San Francisco 49ers from 1979-1982 before becoming a college football head coach at Indiana in 1983. He went on to be the head coach of the Bengals from 1984-1991, leading the team to an appearance in Super Bowl XXIII. He was also the head coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers from 1992-1995. His last NFL job was with the Buffalo Bills in 2004 and 2005 as the team’s quarterback’s coach. After that, Wyche became a teacher and was an assistant football coach at Pickens High School in South Carolina through 2018.

January 7 – George Perles, a college football head coach for 12 seasons, dies at the age of 85. Perles played college football for one season at Michigan State before a knee injury ended his playing career. He then became a student assistant coach at the school. Perles spent 11 seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers as a defensive line coach, defensive coordinator and eventually an assistant head coach, helping lead the team to 4 Super Bowl victories in the 1970s. He returned to MSU and was the head coach of the Spartans from 1983-1994, winning two Big Ten titles and a win over USC in the 1988 Rose Bowl. He also became the school’s athletic director in 1990. Perles was let go during the 1994 season. An NCAA investigation forced MSU to forfeit the 11 games that he had coach that season due to an academic cheating scandal. Perles himself was not accused of any wrong doing. In 2006, Perles was elected to the school’s Board of Trustees and remained on the board through 2018.

January 18 – Norm Hill, a player in the Canadian Football League for seven seasons, dies at the age of 91. Hill played college football at the University of Manitoba. He was an end for the Calgary Stampeders from 1948-1950 and was a member of the 1948 undefeated Grey Cup championship team. He will be remembered for his part in one of the greatest plays in Grey Cup history. When Calgary quarterback Keith Spaith threw a completed pass to Woody Strode on one side of the field, Hill flopped on the ground and stayed there unnoticed on the other side of the field. When the ball was snapped on the next play, he got up, sprinted downfield, caught a pass and scored the Stampeders’ first touchdown of the game. Calgary went on to beat the Ottawa Rough Riders 12-7 and capped off a 15-0 season. He went on to play for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers from 1951-1953 and returned to play one final season in Calgary in 1954. After his playing career was over, Hill became a medical researcher and a neurosurgeon.

January 19 – Danny Talbott, who played professional baseball and football, dies at the age of 75. Talbott played college football at the University of North Carolina. He was named ACC Player of the Year in football in 1965 and ACC Athlete of the Year in 1966. Talbott was also named Most Valuable Player in the 1966 East-West Shrine Game. He even helped lead the school’s baseball team to a College World Series appearance in 1966. Talbott was selected in the 17th round of the 1967 NFL Draft by the San Francisco 49ers, but he opted to try pro baseball first. He played one year of minor league baseball in Miami with a Baltimore Orioles' farm team. Talbott then signed with the Washington Redskins and was a backup quarterback for three seasons. Talbott was inducted in the North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame in 2003.

January 28 – Chris Doleman, a Hall of Fame defensive end in the NFL for 15 seasons, dies of cancer at the age of 58. Doleman played college football at the University of Pittsburgh and was selected with the fourth overall pick in the 1985 NFL Draft by the Minnesota Vikings. He played in Minnesota for nine seasons, from 1985-1993. He then played for the Atlanta Falcons in 1994 and 1995 and for the San Francisco 49ers from 1996-1998. He returned to the Vikings to play his final season in 1999 at the age of 38. Doleman was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2012 and is also a member of the Vikings Ring of Honor.

January 29 – Larry Eisenhour, a defensive end in the American Football League, dies at the age of 79. Eisenhour played college football at Boston College and was selected in the sixth round of the American Football League Draft in 1961. He played his entire nine-year career with the Boston Patriots from 1961-1969. Eisenhauer was named to the Patriots All-Decade team of the 1960s. He was also inducted into the Boston College Varsity Club Athletic Hall of Fame in 1978.

February 3 – Willie Wood, a Hall of Fame defensive back, dies at the age of 84. Wood played college football at USC. He was an undrafted free agent who played his entire 12-year NFL career with the Green Bay Packers from 1960-1971. He won five NFL titles during his career as well as the first two Super Bowls. After his playing career was over, he spent three seasons as an assistant defensive coach with the San Diego Chargers from 1972-1974. He then became the head coach of the Philadelphia Bell of the World Football League in 1975, making him the first black head coach in any pro football league since the 1920s. He was also an assistant coach with the Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League in 1979 and was also the team’s head coach in 1980 and 1981, making him the first black head coach in the CFL. Wood was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1989 and is also a member of the Packers Hall of Fame.

February 13 – Chuck Shelton, a college football head coach for 19 years, dies at the age of 84. Shelton played college football at Division II Pittsburg State University in Pittsburg, Kansas as a running back. He was the head coach at Drake University from 1977-1985. He then went on to be the head coach at Utah State from 1986-1991, where he was named the Big West Conference Co-Coach of the Year in 1991. Shelton was the also head coach at the University of the Pacific from 1992-1995. Shelton was inducted into the Missouri Sport Hall of Fame as a coach in 2006.

February 20 – Dan Radakovich, an assistant coach in college and the NFL for 50 years, dies at the age of 84. Radakovich played center and linebacker in college at Penn State. He became an assistant coach with the Nittany Lions from 1957-1969. He was also an assistant coach with the Pittsburgh Steelers in the 1970s and won two Super Bowls with the team. He also spent time as an assistant coach with the San Francisco 49ers, Los Angeles Rams, Denver Broncos, Minnesota Vikings, New York Jets, Cleveland Browns and in college at Cincinnati, North Carolina State and Colorado. Radakovich ended his coaching career back in college as the defensive coordinator at FCS Robert Morris University from 1996-2007.

February 25 – Bob Steiner, who was an offensive and defensive tackle in the Canadian Football League, dies at the age of 73. Steiner played in the Canadian Junior Football League for the Hamilton Hurricanes before signing with the CFL. He played for the Hamilton Tiger-Cats from 1966-1971 and for the Edmonton Eskimos in 1972. He won a Grey Cup championship with the Tiger-Cats in 1967. Steiner is also a member of the Hamilton Hurricanes Hall of Fame.

February 25 – Nesby Glasgow, a defensive back in the NFL for 14 seasons, die of cancer at the age of 62. Glasgow played college football at the University of Washington and was selected in the eighth round of the 1979 NFL Draft by the Baltimore Colts. He played for the Baltimore/Indianapolis Colts from 1979-1987 and was voted as the team’s Defensive Player of the Year in 1984. He finished his playing career with the Seattle Seahawks from 1988-1992. Glasgow was inducted into University of Washington’s Athletic Hall of Fame in 2001.

February 27 – Gloster Richardson, a wide receiver and flanker in the AFL and the NFL, dies at the age of 77. Richardson played college football at Jackson State and was selected in the seventh round of the 1965 AFL Draft by the Kansas City Chiefs. He played for the team from 1967 to 1970. He also played for the Dallas Cowboys in 1971 and the Cleveland Browns from 1972-1974. It was Richardson who Hank Stram sent into the game with the “65 Toss Power Trap” play in Super Bowl IV. Richardson won a championship in Super Bowl IV with the Chiefs and another in Super Bowl VI as a member of the Cowboys. After his playing career was over, Richardson was the wide receivers’ coach at Mississippi Valley State in 1983 and 1984 and coached future Hall of Famer, Jerry Rice.

March 11, 2020 – Del Shofner, a defensive back and wide receiver in the NFL for 11 seasons, dies at the age of 85. Shofner played college football at Baylor and was named the MVP of the 1957 Sugar Bowl. He was the 11th overall pick in the 1957 NFL Draft by the Los Angeles Rams. He played for the Rams from 1957-1960. Shofner was then traded to the New York Giants and played in New York from 1961-1967. Shofner was the first player in NFL history to have two 1,000 yard receiving seasons, 1958 and 1961. He had a total of four 1,000 yard receiving seasons before he retired, three straight from 1961-1963. Shofner is a member of the Baylor Athletics Hall of Fame and the Southwest Conference Hall of Fame.

March 11, 2020 – Ken King, an NHL and CFL executive, dies of lung cancer at the age of 68. King was the president and CEO of the sports group that owns the NHL Calgary Flames since 2001 and later the CFL Calgary Stampeders as well. He was also the publisher of both Calgary daily newspapers, the Calgary Herald and the Calgary Sun.

March 17, 2020 – Bill McPherson, a longtime assistant coach in college and in the NFL, dies at the age of 88. McPherson played defensive tackle in college at Santa Clara University. After serving in the Army, McPherson spent time as a college football assistant coach at Santa Clara as well as at UCLA. He began coaching in the NFL with the Philadelphia Eagles in 1978. He then became an assistant coach with the San Francisco 49ers from 1979-1998. He was a part of the 49ers five Super Bowl Championships. After his coaching career was over, he became a 49ers front office executive from 1999-2005. McPherson was inducted into Santa Clara's Athletic Hall of Fame as a player and a coach in 1984 and was also inducted into the San Jose Sports Hall of Fame's in 2005.

March 19, 2020 – Benny Malone, a running back in the NFL for seven seasons, dies at the age of 68. Malone played college football at Arizona State and was selected in the second round of the 1974 NFL Draft by the Miami Dolphins. He played in Miami from 1974-1978. He was then traded to the Washington Redskins, where he played in 1978 and 1979. After his playing career was over, he became a school teacher in Tempe, Arizona. Malone is a member of the Arizona State Athletic Hall of Fame as well as the Santa Cruz Valley Union High School Hall of Fame where he was a track star. His brother, Art Malone was also a running back at Arizona State and played seven seasons in the NFL for the Atlanta Falcons and the Philadelphia Eagles.

March 22, 2020 – Woody Widenhofer, who coached in college, the NFL and the USFL, dies at the age of 77. Widehofer started out as an assistant defensive coach in college at Michigan State in 1969 and 1970. He also coached at Eastern Michigan and Minnesota before moving on to the NFL. He was a defensive assistant coach with the Pittsburgh Steelers for 11 seasons, from 1973-1983, and won four Super Bowls with the team. He then became the head coach of the Oklahoma Outlaws of the USFL in 1984. Widenhofer was also the head coach at Missouri from 1985-1988 before returning to the NFL as an assistant coach with the Detroit Lions and the Cleveland Browns. After that, he returned to the college ranks once again, where he was the head coach at Vanderbilt from 1997-2001. Widenhofer finished his coaching career as an assistant coach at Southeast Louisiana and at New Mexico State. He retired from coaching after the 2007 season.

March 23, 2020 – Ron Marciniak, a longtime player scout in the NFL, dies at the age of 85. Marciniak played college football at Kansas State and as selected in the seventh round of the 1955 NFL Draft by the Washington Redskins. He only played one season with the team but then went on to become a player scout for the Dallas Cowboys, Cleveland Browns and Baltimore Ravens. He coined the phrase, “Play like a Raven,” which the team still uses today. Marciniak was also the head coach at Dayton from 1973-1976.

March 23, 2020 – Walter Robb, dies at the age of 92 as a result of the COVID-19 coronavirus. Robb was an engineer and the former director of General Electric Co.'s Research and Development Center. After he retired, he bought a couple of minor league sports teams. He owned the Albany River Rats of the American Hockey League from 1998-2010 and the Albany Conquest of Arenafootball2 from 2005-2009. The Conquest changed their name to the Albany Firebirds for the 2009 season.

March 24, 2020 – Mike Stratton, a linebacker in the American Football League and the NFL for 12 seasons, dies at the age of 78. Stratton played college football at Tennessee and was selected in the 13th round of the 1962 AFL Draft by the Buffalo Bills. He played in Buffalo from 1962-1972 and won two AFL titles in 1964 and 1965. He spent his final season as a player with the San Diego Chargers in 1973. Stratton was inducted into the Bill Wall of Fame in 1994.

March 25, 2020 – Terry Tausch, a guard and tackle in college and in the NFL, dies at the age of 61. Tausch played college football at Texas and was selected in the second round of the 1982 NFL Draft by the Minnesota Vikings. He played for the Vikings from 1982-1988. His final season as a player was in 1989 with the San Francisco 49ers where he won a Super Bowl. Tausch was inducted into the University of Texas Athletics Hall of Honor in 2001.

March 27, 2020 - Orlando McDaniel, who played briefly in the NFL as a wide receiver, dies of the COVID-19 virus at the age of 59. McDaniel played college football at LSU and was selected in the second round of the 1982 NFL Draft by the Denver Broncos. He only played in three game that season. He also ran track at LSU and founded the North Texas Cheetahs girls track club in Dallas.

March 29, 2020 - Robert Garff, dies of the COVID-19 coronavirus at the age of 77. Garff was a Utah politician and served as speaker of the Utah House of Representatives from 1985-1987. He also ran a car dealership that his father founded in 1932. Garff was the owner of the Utah Blaze of the Arena Football league. The team played for seven seasons, from 2006-2008 and from 2010-2013.

March 29, 2020 – Jim Lambright, a former college football head coach, dies at the age of 77. Lambright played college football at Washington as a defensive end from 1962-1964. He became an assistant coach at the school in 1969 and was promoted to the Husky’s defensive coordinator in 1978. In 1991, the team shared the college football national championship with the Miami Hurricanes. In 1993, Lambright became the team’s head coach and remained head coach for six seasons from 1993-1998, posting a record of 44-25-1.

March 30, 2020 – Tim Petros, who was a running back in the CFL for seven seasons, dies at the age of 58. Petros played college football at the University of Calgary and won a Canadian College Football National Championship, known as the Vanier Cup, with Calgary in 1983. He was then selected in the fifth round of the 1983 CFL Draft by the Calgary Stampeders. Petros ran for a record 260 yards in the Vanier Cup and was named the game’s MVP. He played for the Stampeders from 1984-1990. After his playing career, Petros went to work in his family’s restaurant, which was located across the street from the Stampeders stadium. He opened his own pizza restaurant in 2013.

March 31, 2020 – Frank Maloney, a former college football head coach for seven seasons, dies from complications of metastatic brain melanoma at the age of 79. Maloney was the head coach at Syracuse from 1974-1980. He led the team to a 31-7 win over McNeese State in the 1979 Independence Bowl. In 1981, he was a player scout for the Dallas Cowboys but then returned to his hometown of Chicago and went to work for Chicago Cubs baseball team. He eventually became the Cubs’ Director of Ticket Operations, working for the team for 29 years. Prior to coaching at Syracuse, Maloney was an assistant coach under Bo Schembechler at the University of Michigan.

April 4, 2020 – Harland Svare, who played linebacker in the NFL for eight seasons and was also an NFL head coach, dies at the age of 89. Svare played college football at Washington State and was selected in the 17th round of the 1953 NFL Draft by the Los Angeles Rams. He played for the Rams in 1953 and 1954 and then signed with the New York Giants, where he played from 1955-1960. He won an NFL title with the Giants in 1956. In his final season as a player with the Giants, he also became the team’s defensive coordinator and remained in that position through 1961. He then became the defensive coordinator of the Rams in 1962. At one time, Svare held the distinction of being the NFL’s youngest head coach at 31 years, 11 months after he was promoted to head coach of the Ram midway through the 1962 season. He remained the Rams’ head coach through 1965. Svare also spent time as the defensive coordinator of the Washington Redskins and was the head coach and general manager of the San Diego Chargers from 1971-1973.

April 4, 2020 – Tom Dempsey, a kicker in the NFL for 11 seasons, dies from complication of the COVID-19 virus at the age of 73. He had been battling Alzheimer’s disease and dementia since 2012. Dempsey was born without toes on his right foot or fingers on his right hand but signed with the New Orleans Saints as a free agent in 1969. He is most famous for kicking an NFL record 63-yard field goal in a game against the Detroit Lions in 1970. He also played for the Philadelphia Eagles from 1971-1974, the Los Angeles Rams in 1975 and 1976, the Houston Oilers in 1977 and the Buffalo Bills in 1978 and 1979. His specially designed kicking shoe is now a part of the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

April 5, 2020 – Ed Biles, a head coach in high school, college and the NFL, dies at the age of 88. Biles started coaching at Woodward High School in Cincinnati, OH in 1953 and was the head coach there in 1954 and 1955. He then became the freshman coach at Xavier in 1956. Biles then became the varsity football head coach from 1962-1968. He moved on to the NFL and was an assistant coach with the New Orleans Saints in 1969 and 1970, the New York Jets from 1971-1973 and the Houston Oilers from 1974-1980. Biles then became the Oilers head coach from 1981-1983. He also spent time as a broadcaster for USFL games in the 1980s and worked as a broadcaster for college football games as well.

April 5, 2020 - Bobby Mitchell, a halfback and wide receiver in the NFL for 11 seasons, dies at the age of 84. Mitchell played college football at Illinois and was selected in the seventh round of the 1958 NFL Draft by the Cleveland Browns. He played in Cleveland from 1958-1961. He was then traded to the Washington Redskins in exchange for Heisman Trophy winner Ernie Davis, who did not want play for the Redskins and their owner, George Preston Marshall. Mitchell played in Washington from 1962-1968. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1983. After retiring as a player, Mitchell worked for the Redskins for many years as a player scout and assistant general manager.

April 7, 2020 – Timmy Brown, who was a halfback and kick returner in the NFL for 10 seasons, dies at the age of 83. Brown played college football at Ball State and was selected in the 27th round of the 1959 NFL Draft by the Green Bay Packers. He only played one game for the Packers. He spent the next eight seasons with the Philadelphia Eagles. Brown played in Philly from 1960-1967 and won the 1960 NFL title as a member of the Eagles. He played his final season in the NFL with the Baltimore Colts in 1968. His final game was a loss to the New York Jets in Super Bowl III.

April 10, 2020 – Pete Retzlaff, who played tight end in the NFL for 11 seasons, dies at the age of 88. Retzlaff played college football at South Dakota State and was selected in the 22nd round of the 1953 NFL Draft by the Detroit Lions. He never actually played for Detroit but instead served in the Army for two years. He was then picked up off waivers by the Philadelphia Eagles and played his entire career in Philly from 1956-1966. He won an NFL title with the Eagles in 1960 and was named the NFL Player of the Year in 1965. After retiring as a player, Retzlaff was instrumental in founding the NFL Players Association. He was also the Eagles’ general manager from 1969-1972. Retzlaff was inducted into the Eagles Hall of Fame in 1989.

April 12, 2020 – Tarvaris Jackson, a former quarterback in the NFL for 10 seasons, dies in a single-car accident at the age of 36. Jackson played college football at Arkansas and Alabama State. He was selected in the second round of the 2006 NFL Draft by the Minnesota Vikings. He played for the Vikings from 2006-2010 and then signed as a free agent with the Seattle Seahawks in 2011. He was traded to the Buffalo Bills in 2012 but returned to the Seahawks in 2013 where he remained though 2015 as a backup to Russell Wilson. In 2019, Jackson was named the quarterback coach at FCS Tennessee State.

April 15, 2020 – Willie Davis, a defensive end for 12 seasons in the NFL, dies at the age of 85. Davis played college football at Grambling State University and was selected in the 15th round of the 1956 NFL Draft by the Cleveland Browns. He spent two years in the Army before joining the Browns and playing two seasons in Cleveland in 1958 and 1959, He was then traded to the Green Bay Packers where he played from 1960-1969. Davis won the first two Super Bowls and five NFL titles with the Packers. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1981 and the Black College Football Hall of Fame in 2011.

April 19, 2020 – Pellum McDaniels III, a linebacker in the NFL for seven seasons, dies at the age of 52. McDaniels played college football at Oregon State. McDaniels played two seasons in the World League of American Football with the Birmingham Fire in 1991 and 1992. He then signed with the Kansas City Chiefs where he played seven seasons from 1993-1998. He finished his playing career with the Atlanta Falcons in 1999. In 2018, McDaniels became the curator of African American Collections at Emory University. He lectured on African-American history and also wrote several books on the subject.

April 20, 2020 – Zac Henderson, who was a defensive back in the NFL, CFL and the USFL, dies at the age of 67. Henderson played college football at Oklahoma and was a member of the Sooners 1974 undefeated national championship team as a freshman. He played for the CFL Hamilton Tiger-Cats in 1974 and 1975, the Philadelphia Eagles in 1980, the Toronto Argonauts in 1982 and 1983 and was named the CFL Eastern Conference Defensive Player of the Year in 1982. Henderson finished his playing career in the USFL with the Tampa Bay Bandits in 1984 and 1985.

April 20, 2020 – Mike Curtis, who was a linebacker in the NFL for 14 seasons, dies at the age of 77. Curtis played college football at Duke and was the 14th overall pick in the 1965 NFL Draft by the Baltimore Colts. He was also selected in the third round of the 1965 American Football League Draft by the Kansas City Chiefs. Curtis signed with the Colts and played in Baltimore for 11 seasons, from 1965-1975. He intercepted a pass that set up the winning field goal for the Colts in in Super Bowl V. Curtis was then selected by the Seattle Seahawks in the 1976 expansion draft where he played for one season. He finished his playing career with the Washington Redskins in 1977 and 1978.

April 21, 2020 – Milt Sunde, who was a guard in the NFL for 11 seasons, dies at the age of 78. Sunde played college football at the University of Minnesota and was selected in the 20th round of the 1964 NFL Draft by the Minnesota Vikings. He played his entire career with the Viking from 1964-1974. He won an NFL title with the Viking in 1969, but lost to the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl IV. After his playing career was over, Sunde owned his own car dealership and coached girls high school basketball.

April 23, 2020 - Dave Fleming, who played in the CFL and the NFL, dies at the age of 76. Fleming played college football at the University of Pittsburgh. He then went to Canada where he played 10 seasons as a running back and defensive back for the Hamilton Tiger-Cats from 1965-1974. He won three Grey Cup titles with Hamilton in 1965, 1967 and 1972. In 1971, he recorded the longest reception in franchise history, a 108-yard catch and run for a touchdown against the Toronto Argonauts.

May 3, 2020 – Ryan Wetnight, who was a tight end in the NFL for eight seasons, dies of cancer at the age of 49. Wetnight played college football at Stanford and signed as an undrafted free agent with the Chicago Bears in 1993. He played in Chicago for seven seasons, from 1993-1999. He finished his playing career with the Green Bay Packers in 2000.

May 4, 2020 – Don Shula, the legendary head coach of the Miami Dolphins, dies at the age of 90. Shula played college football at Division III John Carroll University in Cleveland. He was selected in the ninth round of the 1951 NFL Draft by the Cleveland Browns. He was a defensive back and played for the Browns in 1951 and 1952. He then played for the Baltimore Colts from 1953-1956 and finished his playing career with the Washington Redskins in 1957. Shula then went into coach. He started out in college as a defensive coach at Virginia in 1958 and Kentucky in 1959. He then went to the NFL where he was a defensive coach with the Detroit Lions from 1960-1962 before becoming the head coach of the Baltimore Colts from 1963-1969. His Colts team lost to the New York Jets in Super Bowl III. In 1970, he became the head coach of the Miami Dolphins and led the team for the next 26 seasons through 1995. His Dolphins completed the NFL’s only undefeated season in 1972 that culminated in a 17-0 record and a win over the Redskins in Super Bowl VII. They also defeated the Minnesota Vikings in Super Bowl VIII. Shula is the winningest coach in league history with 328 wins and was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1997.

May 11, 2020 – John Teerlinck, a longtime defensive coach in college and in the NFL, dies at the age of 69. Teerlinck played college football at Western Illinois and was selected in the fifth round of the 1974 NFL Draft by the San Diego Chargers. He only played two seasons as a defensive tackle for the Chargers in 1974 and 1975 before going into coaching. He started in the college ranks at Iowa Lakes Community College in 1977 and also spent time at Eastern Illinois and Illinois before moving to the NFL. His first NFL stop was as a defensive line coach with the Cleveland Browns in 1989 and 1990. Teerlinck also spent time with the Los Angeles Rams in 1991, the Minnesota Vikings from 1992-1994, the Detroit Lions in 1995 and 1996, the Denver Broncos from 1997-2001 and the Indianapolis Colts from 2002-2012. He won three Super Bowls during his career, two with the Broncos in 1998 and 1999 and one with the Colts in 2007.

May 14, 2020 – Phyllis George, dies after a long battle with a blood disorder at the age of 70. She was born in Denton, TX and attended the University of North Texas as well as Texas Christian University. She was crowned Miss Texas in 1970 and Miss America in 1971. She went on to be a studio host on the NFL Today pregame show on CBS in 1975, joining Brent Musburger and Irv Cross. George was one of the first women on national television to work in sports broadcasting. She left the NFL Today in 1983 and went on to cover horse racing and was also the co-host of the CBS Morning News. She married John Y. Brown, Jr. in 1973, who owned the NBA Boston Celtics as well as Kentucky Fried Chicken. Brown also served as the Governor of Kentucky from 1979-1983, making George the state’s first lady.

May 14, 2020 – Franklin “Pepper” Rodgers, who was a head coach in college, the USFL and the CFL, dies at the age of 88. Rodgers played quarterback in college at Georgia Tech and led the team to a college football national championship in 1952. He won back-to-back Sugar Bowls in 1953 and 1954 and is a member of the Sugar Bowl Hall of Fame. Rodgers was selected in the 25th round of the 1954 NFL Draft by the Baltimore Colts. But instead of going to the NFL, he joined the Air Force and served for five years. He then went into coaching, first at the Air Force Academy and then at Florida. He was the head coach at Kansas from 1967-1970, UCLA from 1971-1973 and Georgia Tech from 1974-1979. He was also the head coach of the Memphis Showboats in the USFL in 1984 and 1985 and the Memphis Mad Dogs of the CFL in 1995. Rodgers served as the Vice President of Football Operations for the Washington Redskins from 2001-2004.

May 16, 2020 – Rodger Bird, a defensive back and kick returner in the American Football League for three seasons, dies at the age of 76. Bird played college football at Kentucky and was selected in the first round of the 1966 AFL Draft by the Oakland Raiders. He played for the Raiders from 1966-1968 and led the AFL in punt return yardage in 1967. He won an AFL title with the team in 1968. His final game as a pro was a loss to the Green Bay Packers in Super Bowl II. Bird was inducted into the University of Kentucky Athletics Hall of Fame in 2005 and the Kentucky Sports Hall of Fame in 2017.

May 16, 2020 – Michael McCaskey, the grandson of Chicago Bears founder George Halas, dies after a long battle with cancer at the age of 76. McCaskey graduated from Yale University and became president and CEO of the Bears in 1983 following Halas’ death. He succeeded his father, Ed McCaskey as team’s chairman in 1999 and held that position until 2011, when he was replaced by his brother, George McCaskey.

May 18, 2020 – Jesse Freitas, who played quarterback for four seasons in the All America Football Conference, dies at the age of 99. Freitas played college football at Santa Clara University and was selected in the seventh round of the 1944 NFL Draft by the combined team of the Chicago Cardinals and the Pittsburgh Steelers known as the Card-Pitts. The two teams merged for the 1944 season due to a lack of players during World War II. However, he signed with the San Francisco 49ers of the NFL rival AAFC and played in San Francisco in 1946 and 1947. He then played for two other AAFC teams; the Chicago Rockets in 1948 and the Buffalo Bills in 1949. One of his teammates on the 1948 Rockets team was future Pro Football Hall of Famer, Elroy “Crazylegs” Hirsch. Freitas was inducted into the San Mateo County Sports Hall of Fame in 1995. At the time of his death, he was the oldest living former member of the 49ers.

May 18, 2020 – Robert “Ben” Williams, a defensive lineman in the NFL for 10 seasons, dies at the age of 65. Williams was known as “Gentle Ben” and played college football at Mississippi. He was the first black player at the school in 1971 and was selected in the third round of the 1976 NFL Draft by the Buffalo Bills. He played his entire career in Buffalo from 1976-1985. Williams is a member of the Ole Miss Hall of Fame and the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame. In 2002, he was recognized as an SEC Legend.

May 18, 2020 – Fred Wendt, an NCAA record holder in college, dies at the age of 95. Wendt played college football at the Texas College of Mines, which is today known as the University of Texas-El Paso. When he graduated from college, he held NCAA records for single-season rushing yards, single-season scoring, single-game rushing yards and single-game scoring. His 1948 NCAA record 1,570 single-season rushing yards stood for 20 years until it was broken by O.J. Simpson of USC in 1968 when Simpson ran for 1,880 yards. Wendt was selected in the 26th round of the 1948 NFL Draft by the Chicago Cardinals. He was also selected in the ninth round of the 1949 All America Football Conference Draft by the San Francisco 49ers. However, he never played professional football. Wendt was inducted into the UTEP Athletics Hall of Fame in 2005.

May 20, 2020 – Joe Beauchamp, a defensive back in the AFL and NFL for 10 seasons, dies at the age of 76. Beauchamp played college football at Iowa State. He signed with the AFL San Diego Chargers and played his entire career in San Diego from 1966-1975.

May 22, 2020 – Dave Smith, a wide receiver in the NFL for four seasons, dies at the age of 73. Smith played college football at Indian University of Pennsylvania and was selected in the eighth round of the 1970 NFL Draft by the Pittsburgh Steelers. He played for the Steelers in 1970 and 1971 and led the team in touchdown receptions in 1971. Smith also played for the Houston Oilers in 1972 and the Kansas City Chiefs in 1973.

May 25, 2020 – Marv Luster, who played wide receiver and defensive back in the Canadian Football League for 14 seasons, dies at the age of 82. Luster played college football at UCLA and was selected in the ninth round of the 1960 NFL Draft by the Los Angeles Rams. He was also selected that same year in the AFL Draft by the Buffalo Bills. However, he signed with the CFL Montreal Alouettes where he played from 1961-1964. He was then traded to the Toronto Argonauts and played in Toronto from 1964-1972. Luster returned to finish his CFL playing career with the Alouettes in 1973 and 1974, winning a Grey Cup championship with Montreal in 1974. He was inducted into the Canadian Football Hall of Fame in 1990 and was named an All-Time Argo in 1998.

May 29, 2020 – Roosevelt “Rosey” Taylor, who played defensive back in the NFL for 12 seasons, dies at the age of 82. Taylor played college football at Grambling State. He signed as a free agent with the Chicago Bears and played in Chicago from 1961-1969. He was traded to the San Francisco 49ers during the 1969 season and played there from 1969-1971. Taylor finished his playing career with the Washington Redskins in 1972. He won an NFL title with the Bears in 1963.

May 30, 2020 – Phil Croyle, who was a linebacker in the NFL for three seasons, dies of cancer at the age of 70. Croyle played college football for the University of California and was selected in the seventh round of the 1971 NFL Draft by the Houston Oilers. He played for the Oilers from 1971-1973 before being traded to the Buffalo Bills during the 1973 season. After his playing career, Croyle became a firefighter in San Jose, CA.

June 1, 2020 – Pat Dye, a former college football head coach, dies at the age of 80. Dye played college football at Georgia and spent two seasons in the Canadian Football League as a linebacker with the Saskatchewan Roughriders in 1961 and 1962. He then went into coaching. He was the head coach at East Carolina from 1974-1979, Wyoming in 1980 and Auburn from 1981-1992. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2005.

June 1, 2020 – Lee Grosscup, a longtime college football broadcaster, dies at the age of 83. Grosscup was a quarterback in college at the University of Utah and was selected with the 10th overall pick in the 1959 NFL Draft by the New York Giants. He played for the Giants from 1958-1961 and then signed with the New York Titans of the American Football League in 1962. In 1963 he played for the Saskatchewan Roughriders of the Canadian Football League and was on the Oakland Raiders taxi squad in 1964.Grosscup began broadcasting AFL games on NBC in 1966. He worked USFL games of the Oakland Invaders in 1983. He is most known for worked radio broadcasts for the University of California from 1986-2018.

June 3, 2020 – Johnny Majors, who was a long-time college football head coach, dies at the age of 85. Majors played college football at Tennessee. He played one season as a halfback in the CFL with the Montreal Alouettes in 1957 before beginning his long college football coaching career. He started out as an assistant coach at Tennessee, Mississippi State and Arkansas. He became the head coach at Iowa State in 1968 and remained there through 1972, leading the team to their first ever bowl game appearance in the school’s history in 1971. Majors then became the head coach at Pittsburgh from 1973-1976. He led the Panthers to an undefeated season and a college football national championship in 1976. He is most well known as the head coach at Tennessee for 16 season from 1977-1992. He finished his illustrious coaching career back at Pittsburgh from 1993-1996. His jersey number (45) was retired by Tennessee in 2012 and a street on Tennessee's campus in Knoxville is named Johnny Majors Drive in his honor.

June 6, 2020 – John Zook, who played defensive end in the NFL for 11 seasons, dies at the age of 72. Zook played college football at Kansas and was selected in the fourth round of the 1969 NFL Draft by the Los Angeles Rams. The Rams traded him to the Philadelphia Eagles, who then traded him to the Atlanta Falcons. He played in Atlanta from 1969-1975 and in 1971 he recorded the first safety in Falcons history. Zook was then traded to the St. Louis Cardinals where he played the remainder of his career from 1976-1979.

June 6, 2020 – Donald “Reche” Caldwell, who played wide receiver in the NFL for seven seasons, dies at the age of 41. He was shot and killed in front of his home in Tampa. Caldwell played college football at Florida and was selected in the second round of the 2002 NFL Draft by the San Diego Chargers. He played in San Diego from 2002-2005, then signed with the New England Patriots where he played in 2006. He was the Patriots' leading receiver in 2006. Caldwell finished his NFL career with the Washington Redskins in 2007.

June 7, 2020 – Ken Riley, a defensive back in the NFL for 15 seasons, dies at the age of 72. Riley played quarterback in college at Florida A&M an HBCU school. He was selected in the sixth round of the 1969 NFL Draft by the Cincinnati Bengals and played his entire career with the Bengals from 1969-1983. He ended his career with 65 interceptions, 18 fumble recoveries and scored five touchdowns. Riley spent two seasons as an assistant coach with the Green Bay Packers in 1984 and 1985 before becoming the head coach at Florida A&M from 1986-1993. He was twice named Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference’s Coach of the Year.

June 17, 2020 – Jerry Sturm, who was an offensive lineman in the NFL, AFL and the CFL, dies at the age of 83. Sturm played college football at Illinois. He signed with the CFL Calgary Stampeders in 1959 and played in Calgary in 1959 and 1960. He then joined the AFL Denver Broncos where he played from 1961-1966. Sturm also played for the New Orleans Saints from 1967-1970, the Houston Oilers in 1971 and finished his playing career with the Philadelphia Eagles in 1972.

June 19, 2020 – Bill Groman, a wide receiver in the American Football League for six seasons and won four AFL titles, dies at the age of 83. Groman played college football at Division III Heidelberg University in Tiffin, Ohio. He signed with the AFL Houston Oilers in 1960 and played in Houston from 1960-1962, winning the first two AFL titles. He played for the Denver Broncos in 1963 and ended his playing career with the Buffalo Bills in 1964 and 1965, where he won two more AFL titles. Injuries cut short his pro football career, but he went on to be a player scout for the Atlanta Falcons.

June 19, 2020 – Pat Stark, a longtime college football assistant coach and later administrator, dies at the age of 90. Stark played quarterback at Syracuse and was selected in the second round of the 1954 NFL Draft by the Pittsburgh Steelers. However, he chose not to play pro football. Instead, he became an assistant coach at Syracuse and was on the Orange coaching staff when the team won a college football national championship in 1959. He also spent time as the offensive coordinator at the University of Rhode Island, Harvard University and the University of Rochester. He was instrumental in creating the University of Rochester’s Athletic Hall of Fame, which inducted its first class in 1992. Stark himself was enshrined in 2000. He was also inducted into the Syracuse Hall of Fame in 1995.

June 20, 2020 – Jim Kiick, who was a running back in the NFL and in the World Football League, dies at the age of 73. Kiick played college football at Wyoming and was selected in the fifth round of the 1968 NFL Draft by the Miami Dolphins. He played for the Dolphins from 1968-1974 and won two Super Bowls with the team including the 1972 undefeated team. In 1974, he and two teammates, halfback Larry Csonka and wide receiver Paul Warfield, signed with the Toronto Northmen of the World Football League. The Northmen team never played in Canada and was instead moved to Tennessee where it became the Memphis Southmen. Because Kiick, Csonka and Warfield were still under contract with the Dolphins at the time, the three played for Miami in 1974 before joining the WFL and the Southmen in 1975. The WFL folded midway through the 1975 season. Kiick then signed with the Denver Broncos where he played in 1976 and part of 1977 before being traded to the Washington Redskins to end his playing career.

June 20, 2020 – Max Tuerk, who was an offensive lineman in the NFL, dies while hiking in the Cleveland National Forest with his parents at the age of 26. The cause of death was not immediately known. Tuerk played college football at USC and was selected in the second round of the 2016 NFL Draft by the San Diego Chargers. He played two seasons for San Diego in 2016 and 2017. He then played for the Arizona Cardinals in 2017.

June 22, 2020 – Phil Krueger, who was a college football head coach and an NFL executive, dies at the age of 90. Krueger was the head coach at Fresno State from 1964-1965 and also at Utah State from 1973-1975. He also spent time as an assistant coach at USC from 1966-1970. Krueger was an assistant coach with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers from 1976-1980 and was also the team’s general manager in 1991. He even spent three years as a consultant to a professional football team in Tokyo, Japan called the Kajima Deers.

June 28, 2020 – Joe Bugel, a long-time assistant coach in the NFL, dies at the age of 80. Bugel started out as an assistant coach in college as a graduate assistant at Western Kentucky in 1964. He also spent time as an assistant coach at Navy, Iowa State and Ohio State before moving to the NFL in 1974. He was an assistant coach with the Detroit Lions and Houston Oilers before joining the Washington Redskins in 1981. He was the team’s assistant head coach from 1983-1989, won two Super Bowls and is credited with creating the nickname of “The Hogs” for the team’s offensive line in 1982. He then become the head coach of the Phoenix Cardinals from 1990-1993. In 1994, he was an assistant coach with the Oakland Raiders and was the Raiders head coach in 1997.

July 1, 2020 – Gay Culverhouse, the daughter of the original owner of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Hugh Culverhouse, Sr., dies at the age of 73. She was a senior executive of the team for many years when her father was the owner including four years as the Bucs team president, from 1990-1994. Fifteen years later, she became an advocate for former NFL players who were suffering from brain related injuries from their playing careers. She created the Gay Culverhouse Players’ Outreach Program, which is today known as the Retired Player Assistance program. In 2011, she released a book titled, “Throwaway Players: Concussion Crisis from Pee Wee Football to the NFL.”

July 4, 2020 – Earl Thomas, a wide receiver in the NFL for six seasons, dies at the age of 71. Thomas played college football at the University of Houston and was selected in the sixth round of the 1971 NFL Draft by the Chicago Bears. He played in Chicago from 1971-1973, the St. Louis Cardinals in 1974 and 1975 and the Houston Oilers in 1976. He scored the Cardinals first ever post-season touchdown in a game against the Minnesota Vikings in 1974. Thomas had two brothers who also played in the NFL. Jimmy Thomas, played running back for the San Francisco 49ers from 1969-1973. Mike Thomas was also a running back for the Washington Redskins from 1975-1978 and the San Diego Chargers from 1979-1980. Mike was named the NFL Rookie of the Year in 1975. All three Thomas brothers are members of the Greenville High School Athletic Hall of Honor in Greenville, Texas.

July 5, 2020 – Bob Reade, a college football head coach for 16 seasons, dies at the age of 87. Reade played college football at Division III Cornell College in Iowa, where he played center and linebacker. He coached high school football for 17 years, from 1962-1978, at Darnall High School in Geneseo, Illinois. His team won three straight state championships between 1976-1978. Reade then coached at Division III Augustana College in Rockford, Illinois from 1979-1994. He won four straight Division III national championships between 1983-1986. From 1983-87, his team had an unbeaten streak of 60 games, the second longest streak in college football history. In 1993, Reade wrote a book called, "Coaching Football Successfully." He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1998.

July 5, 2020 – Tommy Vaughn, who played safety in the NFL for seven seasons, dies at the age of 77. Vaughn played college football at Iowa State and was selected in the fifth round of the 1965 NFL Draft by the Detroit Lions. He was also selected in the 11^th round of the 1965 AFL Draft by the Denver Broncos. Vaughn played his entire career in Detroit from 1965-1971. He was an assistant coach with the Detroit Wheels of the World Football League in 1974. In 1975, Vaughn became an assistant coach at Iowa State. He also spent time as an assistant coach at Missouri and Wyoming. Vaughn was inducted into the Iowa State Hall of Fame in 2005.

July 7, 2020 – Bob Hitchens, a halfback in college, dies at the age of 68. Hitchens played college football at the University of Miami (Ohio). He was named Mid-American Conference Offensive Player of the Year in 1972 and the school has retired his jersey number (40). He went on to play two seasons in the NFL for the New England Patriots, Kansas City Chiefs and the Pittsburgh Steelers in the mid-70s. After his brief NFL career, Hitchens went on to be an assistant football coach at Division III Carnegie-Mellon University. He also served as an assistant football coach for Miami (Ohio) from 1980 to 1987. Hitchens was inducted into the Miami University Hall of Fame in 1980.

July 8, 2020 – King Dixon, who was a college athletic director, dies of pancreatic cancer at the age of 83. Dixon played college football at the University of South Carolina from 1956-1958. He was an all-conference halfback and co-captain of the football team in 1958. After graduating in 1959, he went on to serve in the Marine Corps for 22 years, seeing combat in Vietnam. He earned a Bronze Star and two other medals for heroism during his service and retired with the rank of lieutenant colonel. He returned to his alma mater and was the associate vice president for alumni affairs before becoming the school’s athletic director from 1988-1992. It was Dixon who made the decision to accept an invitation for the school to join the Southeastern Conference in 1990.

July 14, 2020 – David Lewis, a linebacker in the NFL for seven seasons, dies at the age of 65. Lewis played college football at USC and won a college football national championship with the Trojans in 1974. He was selected in the second round of the 1977 NFL Draft by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He played for the Bucs from 1977-1981, the San Diego Chargers in 1982 and the Los Angeles Rams in 1983. After his NFL career, Lewis became a high school football coach in Tampa.

July 22, 2020 – Ted Gerela, who played in the Canadian Football League for seven seasons, dies at the age of 76. Gerela played college football at Washington State. He played his entire CFL career with the British Columbia Lions from 1967-1973. He was a kicker as well as a punter and a defensive back. His brother, Roy Gerela, played 11 seasons in the NFL and won three Super Bowls with the Pittsburgh Steelers. His other brother, Dmetro, played briefly as a kicker for the CFL Montreal Alouettes in 1968.

July 22, 2020 – Carlton Haselrig, who was a guard in the NFL for five seasons, dies at the age of 54. Haselrig did not play college football. He was a wrestling champion in college. He was selected in the 12th round of the 1989 NFL Draft by the Pittsburgh Steelers. He played for the Steelers from 1990-1993 and finished his playing career with the New York Jets in 1995. After football, he went on to have a professional career in mixed martial arts.

July 23, 2020 - Noel Jenke, who played pro baseball and pro football, dies at the age of 73. Jenke played linebacker in college at the University of Minnesota and was selected in the 12th round of the 1969 NFL Draft by the Minnesota Vikings. He was also the 13th overall pick that year by the MLB Boston Red Sox. He spent a couple of seasons playing minor league baseball before joining the Vikings in 1971. Jenke only played for the Vikings in 1971. He then played for the Atlanta Falcons in 1972 and the Green Bay Packers in 1973 and 1974.

July 29, 2020 – Gene Lakusiak, who played in the Canadian Football League for eight seasons, dies at the age of 78. Lakusiak played college football at the University of Tulsa, where he was a fullback and placekicker. He went on to play defensive back for the Ottawa Rough Riders in 1967 and the Winnipeg Blue Bombers from 1968-1974. After his playing career, he went on to be a high school teacher and coach in Winnipeg.

August 1, 2020 – Ricky Dixson, a defensive back in the NFL for six seasons, dies from ALS at the age of 53, Dixson played college football at Oklahoma and won a college football national championship in 1985. He was selected with the fifth overall pick in the 1988 NFL Draft by the Cincinnati Bengals. He played for the Bengals from 1988-1992. He also played for the Los Angeles Raiders in 1993. After his playing career was over, he became a motivational speaker for at-risk youth. He also coached high school football and was a physical education teacher at Red Oak High School in Texas. Dixson was enshrined in the College Football Hall of Fame in 2019.

August 3, 2020 – James “Tootie” Robbins, who was an offensive tackle in the NFL for 12 seasons, dies of COVID-19 at the age of 62. Robbins played college football at East Carolina and was selected in the fourth round of the 1982 NFL Draft by the St. Louis Cardinals. He played in St. Louis from 1982-1987. The team then moved to Arizona and became the Phoenix Cardinals where Robbins continued to play through 1992. He finished his playing career with the Green Bay Packers in 1993 and 1994.

August 5, 2020 – Cecil Leonard, who played in the AFL, NFL and WFL, dies at the age of 74. Leonard played college football at HBCU Tuskegee and was selected in the eighth round of the 1969 NFL Draft by the New York Jets. He played defensive back for the Jets in 1969 and 1970. He also played for the Birmingham Americans of the World Football League in 1974, winning the only WFL title game ever played. He was the head coach at HBCU Miles University from 1994-2000. Leonard also spent 20 years as a high school football coach.

August 9, 2020 – Carroll Hardy, who played in the NFL and in Major League Baseball, dies at the age of 87. Hardy played college football at Colorado and was selected in the third round of the 1955 NFL Draft by the San Francisco 49ers. He played halfback for just one season with the 49ers and then played 10 seasons as an outfielder in the MLB with the Cleveland Indians, Boston Red Sox, Houston Colt .45’s and the Minnesota Twins. He is the only man to ever pinch hit for Ted Williams. Hardy also spent 24 years working for the NFL Denver Broncos in several capacities including assistant ticket manager, director of scouting and director of player personnel.

August 11, 2020 – Mitch Hoopes, a punter in the NFL and the USFL, dies at the age of 67. Hoopes played college football at the University of Arizona and was selected in the eighth round of the 1975 NFL Draft by the Dallas Cowboys. He played for the Cowboys in 1975, the Houston Oilers and San Diego Chargers in 1976 and the Detroit Lions in 1977. Hoops also played for the Boston Breakers of the USFL in 1983.

August 11, 2020 – Alex Sandusky, who played guard in the NFL for 13 seasons, dies at the age of 87. Sandusky played college football at the Clarion State Teachers College in Pennsylvania and was selected in the 16th round of the 1954 NFL Draft by the Baltimore Colts. Sandusky played his entire 13-year career with the Colts from 1954-1966. His job was to protect quarterback Johnny Unitas and create holes for running back Lenny Moore. He won back-to-back NFL titles with the team in 1958 and 1959. The 1958 NFL title game, an overtime win by the Colts over the New York Giants, is known as “The Greatest Game Ever Played.” Sandusky was inducted into the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame in 2010.

August 12, 2020 – Howard Mudd, a longtime assistant coach in the NFL, dies two weeks after a motorcycle accident at the age of 78. He had been in an intensive care unit at a Seattle hospital for two weeks. Mudd played college football at Michigan State and at Hillsdale College. He was selected in the ninth round of the 1964 NFL Draft by the San Francisco 49ers. He played guard for the 49ers from 1964-1969 and the Chicago Bears in 1969 and 1970. He then went into coaching. He started at the University of California before moving on to the NFL where he coached for the San Diego Chargers, San Francisco 49ers, Seattle Seahawks, Cleveland Browns, Kansas City Chiefs, Indianapolis Colts and the Philadelphia Eagles. Mudd was set to return to the Colts for the 2020 season.

August 12, 2020 – Bill Yeoman, a former college football head coach, dies at the age of 92. Yeoman played center at Texas A&M and also at the West Point Academy. He was the captain of the Army football team in 1948. After serving in the Army, Yeoman began his coaching career as an assistant coach at Michigan State from 1956-1961. He went on to be the head coach at the University of Houston for 25 seasons, from 1962-1986. He led the school to 17 winning seasons and 11 bowl games. Yeoman was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2001. He is also a member of the Southwest Conference Hall of Honor, the Cotton Bowl Hall of Fame and the Fellowship of Christian Athletes Hall of Champions. In 2002, Yeoman received the Paul “Bear” Bryant Lifetime Achievement Award.

August 13, 2020 - Quentin McCord, who was a wide receiver in the NFL, CFL and the Arena Football League, dies at the age of 42. The cause of death was not immediately announced. McCord played college football at Kentucky and was selected in the seventh round of the 2001 NFL Draft by the Atlanta Falcons. He played in Atlanta from 2001-2003. He went on to play for the CFL Winnipeg Blue Bombers in 2006 and the Edmonton Eskimos in 2007. McCord also spent time in the Arena Football League with the Georgia Force and in the af2 with the Kentucky Horsemen.

August 14, 2020 – Herb Orvis, who played 10 seasons as a defensive tackle and a defensive end in the NFL, dies at the age of 73. Orvis left high school early to join the Army in 1965. While stationed in Germany, he played on the Berlin Bears military football team. University of Colorado head coach Eddie Crowder, who was in Germany on a government sponsored military coaching tour, saw Orvis play and offered him a scholarship. Orvis went on to play college football at Colorado when he got out of the Army. Orvis was the 16th overall pick in the 1972 NFL Draft by the Detroit Lions. He played six seasons in Detroit from 1972-1977. He also played four seasons with the Baltimore Colts from 1978-1981. Orvis was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame in 2016, He is also a member of the Colorado Hall of Fame and the Greater Flint Area Sports Hall of Fame in his hometown in Michigan.

August 15, 2020 – Dick Coury, who coached in the NFL, WFL and USFL, dies at the age of 90. Coury was a student assistant at Notre Dame before becoming an assistant high school coach and later a high school head coach. He became the defensive coordinator at USC in 1966. Coury began his NFL coaching career with the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1969. He then spent two seasons as the head coach at Cal State Fullerton. before returning to the NFL with the Denver Broncos. Coury was the head coach of the Portland Storm of the World Football League in 1974. He then coached for the San Diego Chargers the following year. He was with the Philadelphia Eagles from 1976-1981 before he became the head coach of the Boston Breakers of the USFL in 1983. He was the USFL's Coach of the Year in 1983. He coached the Breakers for three seasons even when they became the New Orleans Breakers in 1984 and the Portland Breakers in 1985. After the USFL folded, Coury returned to the NFL in 1986 as the quarterback coach of the Los Angeles Rams. He also spent time with the New England Patriots, Minnesota Vikings, and Houston Oilers. Coury ended his coaching career with the St. Louis Rams in 1997 and 1998.

August 24, 2020 – Carl Garrett, a running back in the NFL for nine seasons, dies at the age of 72. Garrett played college football at New Mexico Highlands and was selected in the third round of the 1969 NFL Draft by the Boston Patriots. He played for the Patriots from 1969-1972 and was the 1969 American Football League Rookie of the Year. Garrett also played for the Chicago Bears in 1973 and 1974, the New York Jets in 1975 and the Oakland Raiders in 1976 and 1977. He won Super Bowl XI as a member of the Raiders.

August 25, 2020 – Tommy Joe Coffey, who was a wide receiver and a placekicker in the Canadian Football League for 13 seasons, dies at the age of 83. Coffey played college football at West Texas State and was selected in the eighth round of the 1959 NFL Draft by the Baltimore Colts. He chose to sign with the CFL Edmonton Eskimos where he played for seven seasons between 1959-1966. He did not play in 1961. Coffey was then traded to the Hamilton Tiger-Cats where he played from 1967-1972. He won two Grey Cups with Hamilton in 1967 and 1972. Coffey finished his playing career with the Toronto Argonauts in 1973. He is on the Wall of Honor of not one, but two CFL teams, Edmonton (1988) and Hamilton (1999). Coffey was inducted into the Canadian Football Hall of Fame in 1977.

August 26, 2020 – Dan Yochum, who was an offensive lineman in the Canadian Football League for nine seasons, dies at the age of 70. Yochum played college football at Syracuse and was selected in the second round of the 1972 NFL Draft by the Philadelphia Eagles. However, he chose to sign with the CFL Montreal Alouettes where he played for head coach Marv Levy. Yochum played his entire career in Montreal from 1972-1980, He played in five Grey Cup games, winning titles in 1974 and 1977. Yochum was elected to the Canadian Football Hall of Fame in 2004.

September 6, 2020 – Bob Robertson, who was a long-time college football play-by-play announcer and analyst, dies at the age of 91. Robertson began calling games at Washington State University in 1964. Over the next 50+ years, he called 589 games. He missed only one game in all those years; the 1981 Holiday Bowl, because local radio was not permitted to broadcast the game. Robertson also called Cougar basketball games for two decades. He retired in 2018 at the age of 89. Robertson was a 12-time Washington state Sportscaster of the Year and was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2004.

September 8, 2020 – Robert Wilson, who was a wide receiver in the NFL for four seasons, dies at the age of 46. The cause of death was not immediately released. Wilson played college football at Florida A&M and signed as an undrafted free agent with the Seattle Seahawks. He played two seasons in Seattle from 1998 and 1999 and then played for the New Orleans Saints in 2000 and 2001.

September 17, 2020 – Larry Wilson, a defensive back in the NFL for 13 seasons, dies at the age of 82. Wilson played college football at Utah and was selected in the seventh round of the 1960 NFL Draft by the St. Louis Cardinals. He played his entire career with the Cardinals from 1960-1972. After retiring as a player, he went to work in the Cardinals front office. He also spent time on the team’s coaching staff and served as the team’s interim head coach for three games at the end of the 1979 season. Wilson was also the Cardinals’ director of pro personnel from 1977-1988. He remained with the team when it became the Arizona Cardinals, serving as general manager from 1988-1993 and the team’s vice president until he retired in 2003. Wilson was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1978 and was named to the NFL 100 All-Time team in 2019. He was also inducted into the Utah’s Crimson Club Hall of Fame in 1985.

September 22, 2020 – Bob Atkins, who played defensive back in the NFL for nine seasons, dies at the age of 74. Atkins played college football at Grambling State and was selected in the second round of the 1968 NFL Draft by the St. Louis Cardinals. He played for the Cardinals in 1968 and 1969. He was then traded to the Houston Oilers where he played from 1970-1976. He went on to become an assistant football coach and the women’s head basketball coach at Prairie View A&M from 1984-2005. Atkins then became the school’s Director of Athletic Operations and retired in 2011.

September 23, 2020 – Gale Sayers, one of the greatest running backs to ever play in the NFL, dies at the age of 77. Sayers played college football at Kansas where he earned the nickname, “The Kansas Comet.” He was the fourth overall selection in the 1965 NFL Draft by the Chicago Bears. He was also selected with the fifth overall pick in the 1965 American Football League Draft by the Kansas City Chiefs. Sayers chose to sign with the Bears and played in Chicago from 1965-1971. He tied an NFL record with six touchdowns in a single game on December 12, 1965. In a game against the San Francisco 49ers, he ran for four touchdowns, caught a pass for another and also had an 85-yard punt return for a score. He was named the 1965 NFL Rookie of the Year. His career was cut short after only seven seasons by knee injuries. Sayers’ autobiography, “I am Third,” was published in 1970. One part of the book was turned into a TV movie in 1971 called, “Brian’s Song” starring Billie Dee Williams and James Caan. It told the story of his friendship with teammate Brian Piccolo. Sayers was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1977, the youngest player ever inducted at the age of 34. His number (40) was retired by the Bears in 1994.

September 23, 2020 – Leo Sugar, who played defensive end in the NFL for nine seasons, dies at the age of 91. Sugar played college football at Purdue. He played fullback his first year in college but was then switched to defensive end. He was selected in the 11th round of the 1952 NFL Draft by the Chicago Cardinals. However, Atkins was drafted into the Army and spent time serving in the Korean War before joining the team two years later. He played for the Cardinals from 1954-1959 and also in 1960, after the team moved and became the St. Louis Cardinals. Atkins also played for the Philadelphia Eagles in 1961 and he finished his playing career with the Detroit Lions in 1962.

September 24, 2020 – Derland Moore, who was a defensive lineman in the NFL for 14 seasons, dies at the age of 68. Moore played college football at Oklahoma and was selected in the second round of the 1973 NFL Draft by the New Orleans Saints. He played for the Saints from 1973-1985. He finished his playing career with the New York Jets in 1986. Moore was inducted into the Saints Hall of Fame in 1991. He was also inducted into the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame in 2004.

October 14, 2020 – Fred Dean, a defensive end in the NFL for 11 seasons, dies at that age of 68. Dean played college football at Louisiana Tech and helped lead the team to the 1973 Division II National Championship. He was selected in the second round of the 1975 NFL Draft by the San Diego Chargers. He played for the Chargers from 1975-1981 and was then traded to the San Francisco 49ers, where he played from 1981-1985. Dean won two Super Bowls with the 49ers in 1982 and 1985. He was inducted into the Louisiana Tech Athletic Hall of Fame in 1990, the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2008 and the College Football Hall of Fame in 2009.

October 19, 2020 – Chris Isaac, a former Canadian Football League Rookie of the Year, dies at the age of 61. Isaac played quarterback in college at Eastern Kentucky. He won a Division I-AA national championship with the team in 1979 and was a I-AA runner-up in 1980 and 1981. Isaac signed with the CFL Ottawa Rough Riders and played for the team in 1982 and 1983. He earned CFL Rookie of the Year honors in 1982. After his brief pro football career, he went on to be an assistant football coach at Bethune-Cookman University and was also a high school math teacher. Isaac was inducted into the Eastern Kentucky Athletic Hall of Fame in 2012.

October 20, 2020 – Ron Murphy, who played and coached in the CFL and in college, dies at the age of 88. Murphy was signed by the CFL Hamilton Tiger-Cats right out of high school. He was an offensive lineman on the team in 1952 and 1953 and won a Grey Cup title in 1953. He then played college football for three seasons at McGill University in Montreal. Murphy returned to the CFL after being selected with the fourth overall pick in the 1958 CFL Draft by the Montreal Alouettes. He played guard and linebacker with the Alouettes for four seasons, from 1958-1961. Murphy then went into coaching. He started out as an assistant coach at McGill, winning a Yates Cup conference title in 1962. He also spent time as an assistant with the Alouettes before joining the University of Toronto Varsity Blues as an assistant coach in 1965. The team won the inaugural Vanier Cup national championship that year. He became the head coach of the Varsity Blues the following year and spent the next 17 years there, from 1966-1982. He was named the Canadian Interuniversity Athletics Union Coach of the Year in 1974. He came out of retirement and was once again an assistant coach at the school from 1986 to 1993, winning his second Vanier Cup national championship in 1993. Murphy is a member of the University of Toronto Sports Hall of Fame.

October 21, 2020 – Bill Mathis, a fullback and halfback in all 10 seasons of the American Football League, dies at the age of 81. Mathis played college football at Clemson and was selected in the eighth round of the 1960 NFL Draft by the San Francisco 49ers. His AFL rights were originally held by the Denver Broncos, then the Houston Oilers, who traded him to the New York Titans just before the first AFL season began. He played his entire career with the New York team, who changed its name to the New York Jets in 1963. Jets head coach Weeb Ewbanks had Mathis room with quarterback Joe Namath during road games and gave Mathis specific instructions to “keep Namath out of trouble.” Mathis and Namath won Super Bowl III with the Jets in 1963. Mathis was one of just 20 players who played in the AFL for all of its 10 seasons. After he retired, he went to work on Wall Street. Mathis is a member of the Georgia Sports Hall f Fame, the South Carolina Hall of Fame and the Clemson Hall of Fame

October 21, 2020 – Tom Yewcic, who played in the AFL, CFL and Major League Baseball, dies at the age of 88. Yewcic played college football at Michigan State and was selected in the 27th round of the 1954 NFL Draft by the Pittsburgh Steelers. However, he opted to play baseball and signed with the Detroit Tigers. When his baseball career did not work out, he played half a season in the CFL with the Toronto Argonauts before signing with the AFL Boston Patriots in 1961. He played quarterback and punter for the Patriots from 1961-1966.

October 21, 2020 – Mario Henderson, a tackle in the NFL for four seasons, dies at the age of 35. The cause of death was not immediately known. Henderson played college football at Florida State and was selected in the third round of the 2007 NFL Draft by the Oakland Raiders. He played for the Raiders from 2007-2010. After that, he spent time with the Virginia Destroyers of the United Football League, the Utah Blaze and the Tampa Bay Storm of the Arena Football League, and the Colorado Ice of the Indoor Football League.

October 22, 2020 – Matt Blair, who was a linebacker in the NFL for 12 seasons, dies at the age of 70. Blair played college football at Iowa State and was selected in the second round of the 1974 NFL Draft by the Minnesota Vikings. He played his entire career with the Vikings from 1974-1985. Blair played in Super Bowls 9 and 11 and was inducted into the team’s Ring of Honor in 2012.

October 23, 2020 – William Cordell Gorden, a college football head coach for 15 seasons, dies at the age of 90. Gorden was the head coach at HBCU Jackson State from 1977-1991. In his 15 seasons, he compiled an overall record of 119-48-5 and is the winningest coach in school history. He led the team to the Division I-AA playoffs nine times, won eight Southwest Athletic Conference titles and was named the conference’s Coach of the Year six times. He even won an HBCU National Championship in 1985. After he retired as the coach, he spent two years serving as the school’s athletic director. Gorden was inducted into the SWAC Hall of Fame in 1994, the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame in 1997 and the College Football Hall of Fame in 2008.

October 26, 2020 – David Braley, who owned three different teams in the Canadian Football League, dies at the age of 79. Braley was the owners of the Hamilton Tiger-Cats from 1989 until 1991. He then bought the British Columbia Lions in 1997 and still owned the team at the time of his death. The Lions won three Grey Cup championships in 2000, 2006 and 2011. He was also the owner of the Toronto Argonauts from 2010-2014 when the team was in financial trouble. The Argos won the 100th Grey Cup in Toronto in 2012. Braley was a graduate of McMaster University in Hamilton and spent time as the chairman of the CFL’s Board of Governors. He was also the interim CFL Commissioner for nine months in 2002 and even served three years in the Canadian Senate from 2010-2013. Braley was inducted into the Canadian Football Hall of Fame in 2012.

October 29, 2020 – Essex Johnson, a running back in the NFL for nine seasons, dies at the age of 74. Johnson played college football at Grambling State. He was selected in the sixth round of the 1968 NFL Draft by the Cincinnati Bengals. Johnson was one of the original draft picks of the newly formed team and played in Cincinnati from 1968-1975. His best season was in 1973 when he rushed for 997 yards. Known as “The Essex Express”, he finished his playing career with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 1976.

October 29, 2020 – Jimmy Orr, who was a wide receiver in the NFL for 13 seasons, dies at the age of 85. Orr played college football at Georgia and was selected in the 25th round of the 1957 NFL Draft by the Los Angeles Rams. He was then traded to the Pittsburgh Steelers where he played form 1958-1960. Orr was named NFL Rookie of the year in 1958. He finished his playing career with the Baltimore Colts from 1961-1970. He lost to the New York Jets in Super Bowl II. However, his final game as a player was a win in Super Bowl V over the Dallas Cowboys. After his playing days were over, Orr became a broadcaster and also spent time as an assistant coach with the Atlanta Falcons.

October 30, 2020 – Herb Adderly, who played defensive back in the NFL for 12 seasons, dies at the age of 81. Adderly played college football at Michigan State and was selected with the 12th overall pick in the 1961 NFL Draft by the Green Bay Packers. He was also selected in the second round of the 1961 AFL Draft by the New York Titans. Adderly signed with the Packers and played in Green Bay from 1961-1969, winning five NFL titles as well as the first two Super Bowls. He finished his playing career with the Dallas Cowboys from 1970-1972, winning Super Bowl VI. He played in four of the first six Super Bowls, two with the Packers and two with the Cowboys, and on three of them. Adderly was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1980 and the Packers Hall of Fame in 1981. After his playing career, Adderly worked as a broadcaster for Temple University and Philadelphia Eagles games. He was also an assistant coach of the Philadelphia Bell of the World Football League.

November 1, 2020 – Paul Crane, a center in the NFL for seven seasons, dies at the age of 76. Crane played college football at Alabama and won back-to-back college football national championships in 1964 and 1965. He signed with the New York Jets in 1966 as an undrafted free agent and played his entire career with the team though 1972. He was a member of the Jets team that won Super Bowl III. After his NFL career was over, Crane served as an assistant coach for Alabama from 1974-1978 as well as at Ole Miss from 1978-1981. He finished his coaching career at McGill-Toolen Catholic High School in Mobile, Alabama from 1991-1998. Crane was inducted into the Mobile Sports Hall of Fame in 1991 and the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame in 1994. The annual Paul Crane Offensive Lineman Award is given out at the end of Alabama’s spring practice every year in his honor.

November 4, 2020 – John Meyer, an assistant coach in the NFL for 15 seasons, dies at the age of 78. Meyers played college football at Notre Dame. He was selected in the eighth round of the 1965 NFL Draft by the St. Louis Cardinals. He was also selected in the 15th round of the 1965 AFL Draft by the Buffalo Bills. Meyer ended up playing linebacker for just one season with the AFL Houston Oilers in 1966 before suffering a career ending injury. He then went into coaching at the age of 25. He started out as the linebacker coach of the Boston Patriots and New England Patriots from 1969-1972, then coached with the Detroit Lions in 1973 and 1974 and the Green Bay Packers from 1975-1983. Meyer was also the Packers defensive coordinator from 1980-1983.

November 11, 2020 – Titus Davis, a record setting wide receiver on his college football team, dies of cancer at the age of 27. Davis played college football at Central Michigan University from 2011-2014. He left as the school’s career leader in receiving yards and receiving touchdowns. Both records had been previously held by Antonio Brown. He was not selected in the 2015 NFL Draft but spent time with the San Diego Chargers, New York Jets, Buffalo Bills and Chicago Bears during a brief NFL career. He is the brother of Cory Davis, who played college football at Western Michigan University and is currently a wide receiver with the Tennessee Titans.

November 11, 2020 – Mark Kosmos, a linebacker in the CFL for eight seasons, dies at the age of 75. Kosmos played college football at the University of Oklahoma. He signed with the Montreal Alouettes and played there in 1970 and 1971. He then signed with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, where he played in 1972 and 1973. He was traded to the Ottawa Rough Riders during the 1973 season and played the rest of his career with the Rough Riders from 1973-1977. Kosmos won four Grey Cup titles during his CFL career, one with Montreal, one with Hamilton and two with Ottawa. He was inducted into the Ottawa Sports Hall of Fame in 2006.

November 11, 2020 – Charles DeJurnett, a defensive tackle in the WFL for two seasons and in the NFL for 10 seasons, dies of cancer at the age of 68. DeJurnett played college football at San Jose State and was selected in the 17th round of the 1974 NFL Draft by the San Diego Chargers. However, he signed with the Southern California Sun of the World Football League, where he played in 1974 and 1975. He then joined the Chargers in 1976 and played in San Diego through 1980. He finished his playing career with the Los Angeles Rams from 1982-1986.

November 13, 2020 – Paul Hornung, the legendary Packers halfback known as The Golden Boy, dies at the age of 84. Hornung played college football at Notre Dame and won the Heisman Trophy in 1956. He was the first overall pick in the 1957 NFL Draft by the Green Pay Packers. He played his entire career with the Packers from 1957-1966. He was suspended for the 1963 season, however, along with Alex Karras of the Detroit Lions for gambling on NFL games. Hornung could run, throw and also place kick. In 1960, he set an NFL record when he scored 176 points on 15 touchdowns, 15 field goals and 41 extra points. This was during a 12-game season. That record stood until 2006. Hornung’s number (5) was retired by Vince Lombardi in 1967. He won four NFL titles in 1961, 1962, 1965 and 1966 as well as Super Bowl I in 1967. Hornung was inducted into the Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame in 1975 and the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1986.

November 15, 2020 – Fred “Curly” Morrison, a fullback in the NFL for seven seasons, dies at the age of 94. Morrison played college football at Ohio State and was named the MVP of the 1950 Rose Bowl game. He was selected with the 10th overall pick in the 1950 NFL Draft by the Chicago Bears. He played in Chicago from 1950-1953 and then for the Cleveland Browns from 1954-1956. He won back-to-back NFL titles with the Browns in 1954 and 1955. Morrison went on to become the general manager of the Southern California Sun of the World Football League in 1974 as well as the Chief Operating Officer of the Los Angeles Express of the United States Football League in 1983. He was inducted into the Rose Bowl Hall of Fame in 1993 and the Ohio State Athletics Hall of Fame in 2010.

November 19, 2020 – Jake Scott, a defensive back in the NFL for nine seasons, dies of a head injury sustained from falling down stairs at the age of 75. Scott played college football at Georgia and was selected in the seventh round of the 1970 NFL Draft by the Miami Dolphins. He played for the Dolphins from 1970-1975 and won back-to-back Super Bowls in 1972 and 1973. He was the MVP of Super Bowl VII, which capped off the Dolphins’ 1972 perfect season. He made two interception in the game. Scott finished his playing career with the Washington Redskins from 1976-1979. He wore jersey number 13 in Miami before quarterback Dan Marino famously wore it in the 1980s and 1990s. Scott was inducted into the Dolphins Honor Role in 2010 and the College Football Hall of Fame in 2011.

November 22, 2020 – George Nock, who was a running back in the NFL for four seasons, dies of complication from COVID-19 at the age of 74. Nock played college football at HBCU Morgan State. He was selected in the 16th round of the 1969 NFL Draft by the New York Jets. He played for the Jets from 1969-1971 and the Washington Reskins in 1972. Nock went on to be an accomplished artist and sculptor.

November 24, 2020 – Jim Hanifan, who coached in college and in the NFL, dies at the age of 87. Hanifan played college football at California and played one season as a wide receiver in the Canadian Football League with the Toronto Argonauts in 1955.He began his coaching career as an assistant coach at Yuba Junior College in California for three seasons from 1959-1961. He spent the next two years as the head coach at Charter Oak High School in Covina, California. He then spent time as a college football assistant coach at Utah, California and San Diego State from 1966-1972 before moving on to the NFL. Hanifan was the offensive line coach for the St. Louis Cardinals from 1973-1978. He then spent a season with the San Diego Chargers before returning to the Cardinals as the head coach from 1980-1985. He went on be an assistant coach with the Atlanta Falcons and Washington Redskins and served as the Falcons interim head coach in 1989. Hanifan’s last coaching stop was with the St. Louis Rams where he was an assistant coach from 1997-2003. He was a member of the Rams’ Super Bowl XXXIV championship team in 2000. From 2004 to 2008, he was a color commentator for the Rams radio broadcast team.

November 24, 2020 – Ruffin Rodrique, a guard who played briefly in the World League of American Football, dies of a heart attack at the age of 53. Rodrigue played college football at LSU from 1986-1989. He then went to Canada and played for the Montreal Machine of the World League of American Football in 1991 before an injury ended his playing career. In 2000, he opened an Italian Restaurant in Baton Rouge, Louisiana called Ruffino’s and in 2013, he opened a second location Lafayette, Louisiana.

November 24, 2020 – Chris Johnstone, a running back in the Canadian Football League for 10 seasons, dies of cancer at the age of 56, Johnstone played college football at Bakersfield Community College. He signed with the Edmonton Eskimos in 1986 and played for the team for seven seasons through 1992. He won a Grey Cup title with Edmonton in 1987. Johnstone finished his CFL playing career with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers from 1993-1995.

November 25, 2020 – Markus Paul, who played and coached in the NFL, dies at the age of 54. The cause of death was not immediately known. Paul played college football at Syracuse and was selected in the fourth round of the 1989 NFL Draft by the Chicago Bears. He played defensive back for the Bears from 1989-1993. He was then traded to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers during the 1993 season and finished his playing career with the Bucs that year. Paul then went into coaching. He started out with the New Orleans Saints and also spent time with the New England Patriots, New York Jets and New York Giants. He was the Strength and Conditioning Coordinator of the Dallas Cowboys at the time of his death.

December 5, 2020 – Marv Marinovich, the father of NFL quarterback Todd Marinovich, dies at the age of 81. Marv played college football at USC and was the captain of the team that won a college football national championship in 1962. He was selected in the 12th round of the 1962 NFL Draft by the Los Angeles Rams. He was also selected in the 28th round of the 1962 AFL draft by the Oakland Raiders. He signed with the Raiders and was with the team as a guard for three seasons, but he only appeared in one game in 1965. He then became the Raiders’ strength and conditioning coach. Marv then became obsessed with training his son, Todd, to achieve the football success that had eluded him. Todd, also played at USC and was the 24th overall pick in the 1991 NFL Draft by the Los Angeles Raiders. Todd was only with the team for two seasons in 1991 and 1992 and started just eight games. Todd also played for the British Columbia Lions of the CFL in 1999 and the Los Angeles Avengers of the Arena Football League in 2000 and 2001.

December 6, 2020 – Jack Scarbath, the Heisman runner up to running back Billy Vessels of Oklahoma in 1952, dies at the age of 90. Scarbath played quarterback in college at Maryland and was the third overall pick in the 1953 NFL Draft by the Washington Redskins. He played for Washington in 1953 and 1954 and then played for the Ottawa Rough Riders of the Canadian Football League in 1955. He returned to the NFL and finished his playing career with the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1956. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1983 and the Maryland Athletic Hall of Fame in 1984.

December 7, 2020 - Fred Akers, dies at the age of 82. Akers played running back in college at Alabama. He was an assistant coach at Texas under head coach Darrel Royal from 1966-1974, winning back-to-back college football national championships in 1969 and 1970. He then spent two seasons as the head coach at Wyoming in 1975-1976. Akers returned to Texas and was the head coach from 1977-1986. During that time, Akers posted an 86-31-2 record at the school and produced the school’s first Heisman Trophy winner in running back Earl Campbell. Akers finished his coaching career with Purdue from 1987-1990. His overall coaching record was 108-75-3 and he led his teams to 10 bowl game appearances. Akers was inducted into the Texas Athletics Hall of Honor in 2015 as well as the Texas Sports Hall of Fame and the Cotton Bowl Hall of Fame in 2016.

December 8, 2020 – Tony Curcillo, dies at the age of 89. Curcillo played quarterback at Ohio State and was selected in the sixth round of the 1953 NFL Draft by the Chicago Cardinals. He only played one season with the Cardinals in 1953 as a halfback and defensive back and then spent two years serving in the Army. After his military service, Curcillo went up to Canada where he played for the Hamilton Tiger-Cats from 1956-1958 and in 1960. He won a Grey Cup title with Hamilton in 1957.

December 8, 2020 – Tom Louderback, a linebacker in the CFL and the NFL for six seasons, dies at the age of 87. Louderback played college football at San Jose State and was selected in the 10th round of the 1955 NFL Draft by the Washington Redskins. However, he signed with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats of the Canadian Football League and played one season in the CFL in 1955. He returned to the NFL in 1958 and signed with the Philadelphia Eagles, where he played in 1958 and 1959. He was an original member of the Oakland Raiders in 1960 and 1961 and he finished his playing career with the Buffalo Bills in 1962.

December 9, 2020 – Ray Perkins, a head coach in college and in the NFL, dies at the age of 79. Perkins was a wide receiver in college at Alabama and won two college football national championships at the school in 1964 and 1965. He was selected in the seventh round of the 1966 NFL Draft by the Baltimore Colts. He played five seasons with the Colts from 1967-1971 and was a member of the Baltimore team that won Super Bowl V against the Dallas Cowboys. Perkins then went into coaching, starting out as an assistant college coach at Mississippi State in 1973. He then went to the NFL and was an assistant coach with the New England Patriots and the San Diego Chargers before becoming the head coach of the New York Giants from 1979-1982. He returned to the college ranks where he was the head coach at Alabama from 1983-1986. Perking returned to the NFL once again and became the head coach of the Tamps Bay Buccaneers from 1987-1990. In 1992, he was the head coach at Arkansas State. He was back in the NFL as an assistant coach from 1993-2000 with the Patriots, Oakland Raiders and the Cleveland Browns. Perkins finished his coaching career in Mississippi as the head coach at Jones County Junior College in 2012 and 2013 and at Oak Grove High School from 2014-2017.

December 14, 2020 – Al Worley, a record setting defensive back in college, dies at the age of 79. Worley played college football at the University of Washington. He set an NCAA record of 14 interception during the 1968 season, a record that still stands today. Worley went on to play on season for the Seattle Rangers of the Continental Football League in 1969. He later coached at Northern Arizona and at Portland State before being named head coach of the Yokosuka Base Seahawks, a U.S. Navy service team in Japan in 1979. He went on to coach a military team in Korea as well. Worley was inducted into the University of Washington Athletic Hall of Fame in 1992.

December 14, 2020 – Don Calhoun, a running back in the NFL and the USFL, dies at the age of 68. Calhoun played college football at Kansas State. He was selected in the in the 10th round of the 1974 NFL Draft by the Buffalo Bills. He played one full season in Buffalo and was traded during his second season to the New England Patriots where he played from 1975-1981. Calhoun also played for the Philadelphia Eagles in 1982. He finished he playing career with the New Jersey Generals of the United States Football League in 1984. Calhoun was inducted into the Kansas Sports Hall of Fame in 2009. He is also a member of the Wichita Sports Hall of Fame and the North High School Hall of Fame.

December 16, 2020 – Lorenzo Taliaferro, a running back in the NFL for three seasons, dies of a heart attack at the age of 28. Taliaferro played college football at Coastal Carolina and was named the Big South Conference Offensive Player of the Year in 2013. He was selected in the fourth round of the 2014 NFL Draft by the Baltimore Ravens. He played three seasons in Baltimore from 2014-2016. All three of his seasons ended with him being placed on injured reserve. He tried out for the Hamilton Tiger-Cats of the Canadian Football League in 2018, but was cut before the regular season began.

December 21, 2020 – Kevin Greene, a linebacker in the NFL for 15 seasons, dies at the age of 58. Greene played college football at Auburn and was selected in the fifth round of the 1985 NFL Draft by the Los Angeles Rams. He played for the Rams from 1985-1992. He then played for the Pittsburgh Steelers from 1993-1995, the Carolina Panthers in 1996, the San Francisco 49ers in 1997 and he finished his playing career back with the Panthers from 1998 and 1999. After he retired as a player, he spent time as an assistant coach with the Green Bay Packers and the New York Jets. Greene was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2016.

December 23, 2020 – Ron Widby, a punter in the NFL for six seasons, dies at the age of 75. Widby played college football at Tennessee and was selected in the fourth round of the 1967 NFL Draft by the New Orleans Saints. However, he played one year of professional basketball with the New Orleans Buccaneers of the American Basketball Association in 1967 before signing with the Dallas Cowboys. He played in Dallas from 1968-1971 and also for the Green Bay Packers from 1972-1973. Widby was a member of the Cowboys’ Super Bowl VI championship team.

December 25, 2020 – Ty Jordan, a freshman running back at the University of Utah, dies of an apparent accidental self-inflicted gunshot wound to the hip at the age of 19. Jordan was a member of the 2020 recruiting class at the school and was recently named the Pac-12 Conference Offensive Freshman of the Year. Jordan led the Utes with 597 yards rushing and six touchdowns this past season.

December 27, 2020 – Loyd Phillips, a defensive lineman in the NFL for three seasons, dies at the age of 75. Phillips played college football at Arkansas and was selected with the tenth overall pick in the 1967 NFL Draft by the Chicago Bears. He played in Chicago from 1967-1969 before a leg injury ended his playing career. Phillips was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1992 and the Cotton Bowl Hall of Fame in 2001. He is also enshrined in the University of Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame, the Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame, the Texas Sports Hall of Fame and the Southwest Conference Hall of Fame.

December 28, 2020 – Jack “Cy” McClairen, an end/wide receiver in the NFL for six seasons, dies at the age of 89. McClairen played college football at FCS Bethune-Cookman University and was selected in the 26th round of the 1953 NFL Draft by the Pittsburgh Steelers. He spent two years serving in the Army before joining the Steelers in 1955 and played in Pittsburgh through 1960. A knee injury ended his playing career. He returned to Bethune-Cookman and coached basketball and football. He was also an assistant coach on the school’s woman’s golf team For many years, he was also the school’s athletic director. McClairen was inducted into the Florida Sports Hall of Fame in 1988 and was an inaugural member of the Bethune-Cookman Athletic Hall of Fame in 2000. He is also enshrined in the Mideast Athletic Conference Hall of Fame and the Southern Intercollegiate Conference Hall of Fame.

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