NCAA Major-College All-Americans Passing Away Prior to Their 41st Birthday
Rodney Rogers, a dynamic power forward for Wake Forest in the early 1990s, died recently at the young age of 54. At first glance, the passing away of ACC Freshman of the Year and three-time all-league selection before declaring early for NBA draft seems he was deprived of a full life. Actually, Rogers and ex-Syracuse A-A Lawrence Moten (who died earlier this year at 53) lived substantially longer than a striking number of their All-American brethren. As for the ACC, North Carolina State had three A-As die before turning 50 (John Richter/45, Lorenzo Charles/47 and Ronnie Shavlik/49).
The Big Ten Conference has had five All-Americans from as many different members (Michigan's Bill Buntin, Michigan State's Terry Furlow, Indiana's Bill Menke, Illinois' Don Sunderlage and Purdue's Caleb Swanigan) die prior to their 32nd birthday. Almost 50 major-college A-As died before their 51st birthday. Following is a list of more than 20 major-college All-Americans perishing before their 41st birthday:
| Player, Pos. | Age at Death (Cause of Demise) | DI College | All-American Recognition |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wayne Estes, F | 21 years/10 months (instantly electrocuted when dangling live high-voltage wire brushed against his forehead while inspecting scene of someone else's car hitting utility pole) | Utah State | 1964 (C2, NABC3) and 1965 (AP1, C1, UPI1, USBWA1, NABC2) |
| Len Bias, F | 22 years/7 months (cocaine overdose in dormitory room while celebrating selection as #1 draft choice of Boston Celtics) | Maryland | 1985 (AP2, USBWA2, NABC3) and 1986 (AP1, NABC1, UPI1, USBWA1) |
| Eric "Hank" Gathers Jr., C | 23 years/21 days (heart muscle disorder causing him to collapse during West Coast Conference Tournament semifinal game on his homecourt) | Loyola Marymount | 1989 (USBWA2, AP3, UPI3) and 1990 (NABC2, USBWA2, AP3) |
| Atwell Milton "Milky" Phelps, F-C | 23 years (aviation training accident) | San Diego State* | 1940 (C3) |
| Caleb Swanigan, F | 25 years/2 months (natural causes in hospital after ballooning to nearly 400 pounds following uninspiring three-year NBA career) | Purdue | 2017 (AP1, NABC1, USBWA1) |
| Terry Furlow, F | 25 years/7 months (car accident crashing into pole on interstate at 120 mph - autopsy revealed traces of cocaine and Valium in his bloodstream) | Michigan State | 1976 (C2, AP3, UPI3) |
| Bill Buntin, C | 26 years/4 days (fatal heart attack following a pickup game) | Michigan | 1964 (C2, AP3, NABC3, UPI3) and 1965 (AP2, C2, NABC2, UPI2) |
| Bill Menke, C | 26 years/2 months (plane crash during WWII) | Indiana | 1940 (C3) |
| Jim Krebs, C | 29 years/7 months (struck in head by falling limb while trying to remove tree from neighbor's yard) | Southern Methodist | 1957 (C1, NABC1, USBWA1, AP2, UP2) |
| Malik Sealy, F | 30 years/3 months (traffic collision when drunk driver in pickup truck was going wrong way on highway) | St. John's | 1992 (UPI2, USBWA2, AP3) |
| Don Sunderlage, G | 31 years/6 months (car accident along with his wife) | Illinois | 1951 (C3, UP3) |
| Walt Torrence, G-F | 32 years/1 month (car accident as a passenger) | UCLA | 1959 (C1, UPI3) |
| Robert "Jack" Tingle, F | 33 years/8 months (cancer) | Kentucky | 1947 (NABC2) |
| Audley "Audie" Brindley, C | 33 years/10 months (cancer) | Dartmouth | 1944 (C1) |
| Robert "Tractor" Traylor, F | 34 years/3 months (massive heart attack in apartment while playing professionally in Puerto Rico) | Michigan | 1998 (NABC3) |
| Lorenzen Wright, C | 34 years/8 months (homicide carried out by ex-wife's accomplice from church; ex-spouse masterminded murder to secure $1 million insurance policy) | Memphis State | 1996 (UPI2, AP3, NABC3) |
| Michael Wright, F | 35 years/10 months (head trauma from ax after rendered insensible by date rape drug; longtime male roommate and an accomplice were charged with murder) | Arizona | 2001 (AP3) |
| Maurice Stokes, C | 36 years/9 months (heart attack 12 years after severe head injury during game left him paralyzed) | St. Francis (Pa.) | 1955 (C2, NABC2, AP3, UP3) |
| Andre Emmett, F-G | 37 years/27 days (ambushed and shot by thieves outside his residence after he was followed home from nightclub) | Texas Tech | 2004 (NABC1, USBWA1, AP2) |
| Lloyd "Sonny" Dove, C | 37 years/5 months (taxicab he was driving skidded off drawbridge plunging 25 feet into water) | St. John's | 1967 (C2, NABC2, UPI2, AP3) |
| Bob Doll, C | 40 years/just under 1 month (suicide from gunshot to head; body and weapon found in Rocky Mountain location five days after he vanished on Labor Day) | Colorado | 1942 (NCAA2) |
| "Pistol" Pete Maravich, G | 40 years/6 months (undetected congenital heart defect; autopsy revealed only one coronary artery after he passed away while participating in casual pickup game at church in CA) | Louisiana State | 1968 (AP1, C1, NABC1, UPI1, USBWA1), 1969 (AP1, C1, NABC1, USBWA1) and 1970 (AP1, C1, NABC1, UPI1, USBWA1) |
| Alec Kessler, F | 40 years/9 months (heart attack during pickup game) | Georgia | 1990 (UPI2) |
| Gary "Tex" Bradds | 40 years/11 months (cancer) | Ohio State | 1963 (AP1, C1, UPI1, NABC3) and 1964 (AP1, C1, UPI1, NABC1, USBWA1) |
*San Diego State was classified at the NAIA level at the time.
All-American Recognition Key: Associated Press (AP), Converse (C), National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC), United Press International (UPI) and United States Basketball Writers Association (USBWA).