Sports obituaries

[sox83cubs84]

Jerry Harkness, a point guard who played in pro hoops for 6 season, died on 8/24 at age 81.

After appearing in 5 games for the Knicks in 1963-64, he moved over to the NABL, playing for 3 seasons there. The Loyola Chicago grad then joined the fledgling ABA in 1967-68, and played for the Pacers both in that season and in 1968-69 before hanging 'em up for good.

Dave

[sox83cubs84]

Joe Walton, an end who caught passes in the NFL from 1957-63 and later embarked on a long coaching career, died on 8/15 at age 85.

Drafted out of Pitt by the Reskins in the 2nd round of the 1957 NFL Draft, Walton caught passes for the Redskins through 1960, after which he was dealt to the New York Giants, where he did the same until calling it quits as a player after the 1963 season.

After that he began a coaching career in the NFL, the top level of which was being the Head Coach of the Jets from 1983-89. Before that he worked as an offensive coordinator for the Giants (1971-73), Redskins (1978-80) and Jets (1981-82). After being let go by the Jets as their head coach, he went back to his specialty of running the offense, this time for the Steelers in 1990-91.

Dave M.

[sox83cubs84]

Solly Drake, an OF who played in the Majors in 1956 and 1959, died on 8/18 at age 90.

After spending 1956 with the Cubs, he went back to the minors, resurfacing in The Show for the final time in 1959, playing in 9 games with the Dodgers before being dealt to the Phillies and ending his MLB playing career with 67 games there.

His brother is Sammy Drake, a back-up IF who was one of the original Mets in 1962, after playing for the Cubs the two previous seasons.

Dave M.

[sox83cubs84]

Leonard Thompson, a WR-HB drafted out of Oklahoma State by the Lions, for whom he played for his entire 12-year NFL career, died on 8/15 at age 69.

Drafted by Detroit in the 1975 NFL Draft, he wore #39 for his entire playing career, which ended after the 1986 season. His most productive seasons as a wide receiver were from 1983-85: 1983=41 receptions, 752 yards; 1984=50 receptions, 773 yards; 1985=51 receptions, 736 yards.

Dave M.

[sox83cubs84]

Dick Schafrath, a tackle/guard/defensive end whose entire college and pro career was spent with Ohio-based teams, died on 8/15 at age 84.

Paying his college ball at Ohio State, Schafrath was the 2nd round pick of the Cleveland Browns in the 1959 NFL Draft, and played his entire pro career with Cleveland from that point until his final season (1971).

Schafrath was involved in 6 Pro Bowls, named to 4 All-Pro teams, and contributed to Cleveland's last NFL Championship team (1964, before there was a Super Bowl.)

Dave M.

[sox83cubs84]

Spain Musgrove, a DE/DT who played for 4 years in the pros, died on 8/20 at age 76.

Drafted by the Redskins in the 2nd round of the 1967 NFL Draft, the Utah State product spent 3 seasons playing for Washington, before ending his playing career in 1970 with the Oilers.

Dave M.

[sox83cubs84]

Cecil Souders, an end/tackle who played for 3 seasons in the NFL just after WW2 ended, died on 8/30 at the age of 100.

Thought drafted by the Redskins in the 25th round of the 1945 NFL Draft, the Ohio State grad did not play in the NFL until 1947 with the Lions, playing for Detroit from then until he retired after the 1949 season.

Dave Miedema

[sox83cubs84]

Junior Coffey, a RB for 3 NFL teams over 5 seasons, died on 8/30 at age 79.

Playing his college ball with the Washington Huskies, Coffey was selected in both the 1965 NFL Draft (by Green Bay) and the 1965 AFL Draft (by Houston). He chose the Packers and was a member of their 1965 NFL Championship team.

When the 1966 season began, he was on the inaugural season roster of the Atlanta Falcons, starting in all 14 of their games in both 1966 and 1967. He didn't play in the NFL in '68, but began the 1969 season as a starter in all 6 games he played in for Atlanta before being dealt to the Giants, playing in 6 games there, not playing in the league in 1970, and finishing his playing career with the New Yorkers in 1971.

Dave M.

[sox83cubs84]

Keith McCants, a DE for 6 seasons in the 1990s NFL, died on 9/2 at age 53.

The 4th pick in the 1990 NFL Draft, the Alabama star was the 1st round selection of Tampa Bay, and played in all but one regular season game for the Bucs from 1990-92, starting in 31 of 32 games from the 1991 and '92 seasons.

He spent 1993 and part of 1994 with the Oilers, before departing for Arizona, where he finished the '94 season before appearing in all 16 Cardinals games in 1995 before retiring.

Dave

[AKSaint]

Richard Kenneth Davis (July 27, 1942 - November 7, 2019) was a linebacker in the National Football League. In 1964, he was drafted by both the San Diego Chargers of the upstart AFL and the Baltimore Colts of the NFL and chose to play for the Colts. Ted wore the Blue and White until 1966 when he swapped for the Black and Gold of inaugural New Orleans Saints team, playing under Tom Fears from 1967 to 1969. He finished his NFL career with the Miami Dolphins in 1970.

Ted played for collage football for Georgia Tech and was inducted into the Georgia Tech Hall of Fame in 1980. He worked as a Football Umpire in the SEC from 1984 until at least 1989. After leaving football, Ted became a veterinarian in Knoxville, TN and owned his own clinic until retiring in 2010.


1968 Ted Davis
New Orleans Saints

[sox83cubs84]

David Patten, a WR who played on 3 Super Bowl winners in a 12-year NFL career, died on 9/2 at age 47.

The Western Carolina product played in 2 Super Bowl wins for the Patriots, SBs 36 and 39, catching an 8-yard TD pass in SB 36. He was also on the roster of the Patriots team that won SB38.

Over his career he also played for the Giants (1997-99), Browns (2000), Redskins (2005-06) and Saints (2007-08).

Dave

[sox83cubs84]

Sam "Bam" Cunningham, a RB who played all 9 of his NFL seasons with the Patriots, died on 8/15 at age 71.

Bam's NFL career began when the Patriots made him their 1st round draft pick (out of USC) in the 1973 NFL draft. He played from 1973-82 with New England, sitting out 1980 due to a contract dispute.

Despite that, Bam finished his career as the all-time leading Patriots rusher, running for 5.453 yards and 43 TDs. He owned the longest run from scrimmage in the NFL in 1974 (75 yards) and played in 1 Pro Bowl.

Dave M.

[sox83cubs84]

Tunch Ilkin, a native of Turkey who played all but one NFL game of his career with the Steelers, died on 9/4 at age 63.

Drafted out of Indiana State by Pittsburgh in the 6th round of the 1980 NFL Draft, Ilkin played at 3 different offensive line positions from 1980-92 in the black and gold, going to 2 Pro Bowls.

His final NFL game, and his only NFL game in 1993 was wearing the uniform of the Packers.

Dave

[sox83cubs84]

Noel Scarlett, a DT who appeared in 1 game with Dallas in 2000, died on 9/1 at age 47.

Scarlett was originally drafted in 1999 by Minnesota, but did not play with the Vikes in the regular season.

Dave

[sox83cubs84]

Jack Egers, a RW who played for 3 NHL teams over 7 years, died on 9/10 at age 72.

From 1969-70 through 1975-76, Egers played for the Rangers, Blues and Capitals. His most productive seasons were in 1971-72, splitting the campaign between New York and St. Louis, and finishing with 23 goals and 26 assists, and 1972-73, where he contributed 24 goals and 24 assists.

Dave