I was perusing the interwebs trying to remember Reggie Wares's stats and I cam e across a blog discussing his passing?
I knew Cujo Curtis Stewart
Rock Vincent harris
Big Nate nate Hill
From 1987.
I did not realize they all died so young.
I knew Rock the best. He was a great guy.
It is sad to think about, like the author says.
Did you guys know any of these players?
It's sad to think about it, especially when you remember the performances these players turned in for Auburn in the not-too-distant past.
But death has claimed at least eight former Auburn football players -- six of them recruited by Pat Dye and two by Doug Barfield.
The most recent was Nate Hill, a star defensive lineman and four-year letterman under Dye at Auburn. Hill died last September at age 41. He starred at LaGrange High School and was a standout defensive tackle at Auburn from 1984-87. He was drafted in the sixth round by the Packers as a defensive end in 1988. Hill played in three games with Green Bay and one game with Miami in 1988. At the time of his death, Hill worked in Jackson, Miss., but made regular visits to his LaGrange home and assisted with LaGrange High football camps.
Another Auburn defensive lineman who played alongside Hill for a couple of years was Harold Hallman of Macon, Ga., a stubby but quick nose guard.
Hallman died two days before Christmas in 2005. He was only 43.
A stalwart in Dye's defensive lines, he lettered at Auburn from 1983-85.
Though only about 6-foot-1 and 230 pounds, Hall was a bulldog on defense. He was a first-team all-SEC pick at nose guard in 1985 and was a 10th round draft pick of the San Francisco 49ers in 1986 NFL Draft.
Hallman played in the Canadian Football League and was named the league's rookie of the year in 1986 after racking up a team-record 19 quarterback sacks. He retired from the CFL in 1992.
In December 2002, Frank Warren, who was an all-SEC defensive lineman during the Barfield era, died of a heart attack at his home in Birmingham. He was 43.
Warren lettered at Auburn from 1977-80, earning all-SEC honors in 1978 and 1980. He was named to Auburn's "Team of the Seventies" as selected readers of the Birmingham Post-Herald.
Warren, a third-round draft pick of the New Orleans Saints in 1981, played in 189 games in 13 years for the Saints. He posted 52 1/2 sacks, fourth-most in Saints' history. His best season came in 1989, when he had 9 1/2 sacks.
Warren's sacks at Auburn are not in the record books since sacks were only counted from 1981 forward.
Warren missed just eight games in his career because of injury.
Warren returned to his hometown of Birmingham after his career ended, but he returned to New Orleans when he was inducted into the Saints Hall of Fame.
Former Auburn fullback Vincent Harris of Birmingham, who played for Dye from 1986-88, died on Nov. 30, 2001, in an accident at his home. He was just 34.
Harris signed with Auburn in 1985 out of Vestavia High School and redshirted his first season. He scored his first touchdown as a Tiger on a two-yard run on Sept. 20, 1986, in Auburn's 45-0 victory over East Carolina.
Harris was a capable backup for most of his career for FB Reggie Ware, although he was used some at tailback.
Harris had some memorable moments in the 1987 season. In the Sept. 5 season-opener at home against Texas in newly-expanded Jordan-Hare Stadium, Harris caught a 22-yard touchdown pass from QB Jeff Burger. The Tigers won 31-3. The next week against Kansas, Harris scored on a 28-yard run in the Tigers' 49-0 win.
On Oct. 3 at North Carolina, Auburn defeated the Tar Heels, 20-10, with Harris catching a two-yard touchdown pass from Burger. Harris also has some runs and blocks to remember during his career against Alabama.
He went on to get a B.A. degree in communication and a minor in psychology from Auburn University.
Harris later obtained his real estate license and established his own mortgage company -- Vinrick Inc. and Oasis Mortgage Company. He was also CEO of Apollo Entertainment Center, an entertainment promotions company.
QB Corey Lewis of Gallatin, Tenn., the son of former Auburn star Don Lewis, was a hot prospect when he signed with the Tigers in 1988.
Lewis died in Chattanooga, Tenn., in 2000 at age 31 after a long battle with leukemia. Lewis was considered the top prospect in Tennessee, but he wound up being a special teams player and clipboard-holder after being beat out by Stan White.
Perhaps Lewis most memorable play was in the 1991 game at Texas when White was lined up at wide receiver. Lewis took the snap from the shotgun position and got off a wobbly pass that White caught for a first-down.
The night before the 1993 Auburn-Alabama game, former Auburn DB Clarence Morton of Maplesville, who played under Dye, was killed in a traffic accident on U.S. 280 between Birmingham and Auburn. He was on his way to watch Terry Bowden's first Iron Bowl.
Morton, a cousin to former Tiger FB Tommy Agee, was converted to strong safety and wound up starting as a senior, and having some outstanding games for Auburn.
Finally, Curtis Stewart, a running back signed in the class of 1984, was killed in a traffic accident on U.S. 80 between Selma and Montgomery a few years after he graduated from Auburn University. He was an assistant high school coach in Montgomery at the time.
Stewart played at Jeff Davis-Montgomery, but went to Ferrum, Va., Junior College for one year, where he led his team in rushing. He transferred to Auburn in 1984 and played three years as a backup to Bo Jackson, Brent Fullwood and others.
Ironically, Harris, Hill and Stewart played together on Auburn's 1987 team. In the home opening 31-3 win over Texas, Harris scored on a 21-yard pass reception from Jeff Burger, Hill had a fumble recovery that led to one TD and Stewart was one of several tailbacks used throughout his senior year in 1987.
http://auburnfootballfanforum.yuku.com/topic/4522/DEATH-HAS-CLAIMED-AT-LEAST-EIGHT-MODERN-ERA-AUBURN-PLAYERS#.WBjijiT_qiN
3 Replies
1282 Views