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Here is where we look at some of the athletes and sports figures we’ve lost in 2024.
To view previous years, click below:
That list includes former MLB, NBA, and NFL players, as well as coaches.
Former Dallas Cowboy wide receiver Golden Richards died on Saturday at age 73 due to congestive heart failure, his family confirmed on Facebook.
Richards was known for his long blonde locks, which stuck out of his helmet. One of the biggest deep threats for Dallas in the 1970s, he was crucial in the Cowboys Super Bowl win over the Denver Broncos. Richard caught a 29-yard, fourth-quarter touchdown pass off of a gadget play to secure the victory.
Richards played college football at BYU and Hawai’i and was drafted by the Cowboys in the second round of the 1973 Draft. He finished his career with the Chicago Bears and the Broncos.
The WR dealt with health problems and drug addiction, but was sober for the past decade.
“Seven or eight years of wear and tear on the football field for a 175-pound wide receiver who was concussed several times too,” his brother Doug Richards, said to the Deseret Times. “That obviously took its toll.”
In 2011, Richards was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. His brother Doug also said that his brother had fallen and broken his hip on Christmas Day in 2022, requiring four different surgeries.
In his career, Richards played 86 games and had 122 receptions, averaged 17.5 yards per reception, and 17 touchdowns.
“He has left us and gone to a better place,” Doug Richards said. “He fought pretty good there to the end, until it was his time.”
Former NBA player Robert Reid died after a battle with cancer in his home in Houston on Monday at age 68. Reid played 10 seasons for the Houston Rockets, and was a member of the 1981 and 1986 teams that reached the Finals.
He played college basketball at St. Mary’s University before getting taken 40th overall in the 1977 NBA Draft.
Nicknamed Bobby Joe by Rockets radio announcer Gene Paterson, the 6-foot-8 Reid was known for his versatility.
During Houston’s ‘81 run, Reid was in charge of locking up Larry Bird, and held the Hall of Famer to only eight points in back-to-back games.
In 1982, Reid retired to focus on his religion. He and his family follow the Pentecostal faith, and he used to think that by playing basketball, he was sinning.
He took a year off and returned to the league. He spent five more seasons in Houston before being traded to Charlotte in its expansion year. Reid was the team’s third-leading scorer that season. He finished his career with stints in Portland and Philly before retiring for good in 1991. Reid is fourth all-time in games played, fifth in steals, and eighth in points and rebounds for Houston.
Hall of Fame college basketball coach Charles “Lefty” Driesell died at the age of 92.
Driesell won 786 games in his career, and guided four DI programs – Davidson, Georgia State, James Madison and Maryland — to 100 wins. He made the tournament with each school, leading Maryland and Davidson to the Elite Eight.
When he retired from coaching in 2003, only Bob Knight, Dean Smith, and Adolph Rupp had won more games than him. He was inducted into the College Basketball Hall of Fame in 2007, and the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2018.
Driesell played college basketball at Duke before coaching at Davidson for nine seasons. He joined Maryland in 1969 and completely transformed the program. After accepting the job, he said that he would make the Terrapins the “UCLA of the East,” and while they never won a national championship, the Terps won the ACC tournament and the regular season, an NIT Championship, and made the NCAA tournament several times in the 17 seasons he was head coach.
Driesell was at the helm when Maryland lost to NC State in overtime in the 1974 ACC Tournament, regarded as one of the best games in the history of college basketball. The Terps missed the NCAA tournament due to losing, but the following year the NCAA allowed at-large bids, calling it “the Maryland rule”.
After Maryland, he coached nine seasons at James Madison and six at Georgia State. He retired in 2003 after a 41-year head coaching career.
Former MLB pitcher Don Gullett died, one of his former clubs, the Cincinnati Reds, announced. He was 73.
“Don dedicated 24 years to this franchise as a player, coach and minor league instructor,” Reds CEO Bob Castellini said in a statement. “An anchor on the pitching staff of one of the greatest baseball teams in history, his contributions to our rich tradition, our city and his community will never be forgotten.”
Gullett was part of four straight World Series-winning teams. He captured two rings with the Reds in 1975 and ‘76, before earning two more with the New York Yankees in ‘77 and ‘78.
The southpaw debuted in the majors at age 19. He had a nine-year career in which he won 109 games, saved 11, and recorded 921 strikeouts. Gullett had a career 3.11 ERA.
He suffered a career-ending injury in 1978 and returned to Cincinnati to coach. Gullett is a member of the Reds Hall of Fame.
Earl Cureton, a two-time NBA Champion and longtime Detroit Pistons ambassador, died after collapsing at his home on Feb. 4, according to The Detroit News. He was 66.
“The Detroit Pistons organization is deeply saddened by the passing of Earl Cureton, a person who meant so much to the organization as a colleague, former player, community ambassador and friend,” the team said in a statement. “As tough a competitor as he was during his playing years on the court, he was equally kind-hearted, outgoing and impactful off of it. He represented our franchise with great passion and truly enjoyed working to give back and improve the lives of Detroiters in the city he loved so much. We extend our heartfelt condolences to Earl’s family and countless friends and teammates during this most difficult time.”
Cureton spent his college career at Robert Morris and Detroit Mercy before being drafted by the Philadelphia 76ers in the third round of the 1979 NBA draft. He averaged 5.4 points, 4.7 rebounds, and 1.0 assist per game across a 674-game career. “The Twirl” spent time with the 76ers, Pistons, Chicago Bulls, Los Angeles Clippers, Charlotte Hornets, Houston Rockets, and Toronto Raptors, winning championships with the 1982-83 76ers and 1993-94 Rockets.
After his playing career, Cureton coached in the NBA, United States Basketball League, and Continental Basketball Association and had assistant coach roles in the WNBA. Cureton returned to Detroit Mercy to earn his degree in 2011, fulfilling a promise to his mother. He became a Community Ambassador for the Pistons in 2013, leading Pistons organizational outreach and community partnerships.
“He was just a beautiful dude,” former teammate Chauncy Billups said before the Trail Blazers’ game in Denver, via ESPN. “I spent a lot of time with him in Detroit, obviously. Just a big teddy bear. Always so fun. He had one of those infectious laughs where whenever he laughed he made everybody laugh. Never had a bad day, ever. I marvel at guys like that, people like that. The world can be really rough and tough and they never see it that way, you know? And I loved that about him. Every time I’d go to Detroit, I’d give him a big hug. So, that was tough news today.”
Former NFL TE/WR Richard Caster, who was battling Parkinson’s Disease, died Friday. He was 75.
Caster was taken in the second round of the 1970 NFL Draft by the New York Jets. He was a three-time Pro Bowler with Gang Green. Caster caught 322 passes for 5,515 yards and 45 TDs.
Caster also played for the Houston Oilers, New Orleans Saints, and Washington. He was inducted into the Jackson State Hall of Fame and was named to the school’s All-Century and All-Centennial teams.
His son Max Caster is a professional wrestler in AEW.
Carl Weathers, the actor who starred in the Rocky franchise, Predator, and The Mandalorian, died on February 1, according to Variety. He was 76.
While known mostly for his acting career, Weathers had a career in football. He spent most of his college days at San Diego State University under Don Coryell, playing defensive end. Weathers won the 1969 Pasadena Bowl with the Aztecs, finishing an 11-0 season as the No. 18 team in the country.
Weathers went undrafted but signed with the Oakland Raiders in 1970. He converted to linebacker and later strong safety, playing eight total games across two seasons. Weathers played in the Raiders’ first-ever AFC Championship appearance during the 1970 season.
After his stint in the NFL, Weathers played in the Canadian Football League as a member of the BC Lions, playing in 18 games over three seasons.
“When I found football, it was a completely different outlet,” Weathers told the Detroit News in 2023. “It was more about the physicality, although one does feed the other. You needed some smarts because there were playbooks to study and film to study, to learn about the opposition on any given week.”
During the offseasons, Weathers worked as an extra and earned a bachelor’s degree in drama from San Diego State in 1974. He went on to star in some iconic roles in sports movie history. Weathers’ breakthrough role was Apollo Creed, the rival-turned-mentor in Rocky through Rocky IV. He later appeared as golf mentor Chubbs in the Adam Sandler comedy Happy Gilmore.
College baseball’s winningest coach Mike Martin died on Feb. 1. The former Florida State skipper was 79.
Martin compiled a 2,029-736-4 record in 40 years at the helm. He retired in 2019, and is the NCAA’s winningest coach. Though the Seminoles never won a national title, Martin guided FSU to 19 conference titles and 40 NCAA tournament appearances. Florida State advanced to the College World Series 17 times under Martin, who was diagnosed with Lewy body dementia three years ago.
The National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association’s Coach of the Year award is named in his honor. Martin was inducted into the Florida and North Carolina Sports Hall of Fames — he was born in Charlotte — the American Baseball Coaches Association Hall of Fame, and the Florida State Athletics Hall of Fame.
Former standout Auburn wide receiver Terry Beasley died of an apparent suicide, according to police. The College Football Hall of Famer was 73.
His death is being investigated as a possible suicide, according to Moody (Ala.) Police Chief Reece Smith, who said that responding officers “found Mr. Beasley with what appeared to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound.”
Beasley starred at Auburn from 1969-71. The two-time All-American still holds school records for career receiving yards (2,507), touchdown receptions (29), consecutive games with a touchdown catch (8), and most 100-yard games in a season (6) and career (12).
He played alongside Heisman Trophy-winning QB Pat Sullivan. The duo, along with Bo Jackson, are the only Tigers to have their jersey numbers retired by the program.
“He was way ahead of his time,” Sullivan once said of Beasley, according to AL.com. “He was as fast as anyone playing the game. But the thing that really set him apart was that he was awfully, awfully, strong.”
The 49ers drafted Beasley 19th overall in 1972. He played for three seasons before retiring due to injury. It is believed that Beasley, who was a plaintiff in a lawsuit against the NFL on the effects of brain injuries, suffered 19 concussions during his playing career. The suit was settled in 2016.
Golden State Warriors assistant coach Dejan Milojević died on Jan. 17. He was 46.
Milojević had been taken to a hospital in Salt Lake City after having a “sudden and serious health issue” at a team dinner the night before.
According to the Serbian site Meridian Sport, the cause of death was a heart attack.
“We are absolutely devastated by Dejan’s sudden passing,” said Warriors head coach Steve Kerr in a statement. “This is a shocking and tragic blow for everyone associated with the Warriors and an incredibly difficult time for his family, friends, and all of us who had the incredible pleasure to work with him. In addition to being a terrific basketball coach, Dejan was one of the most positive and beautiful human beings I have ever known, someone who brought joy and light to every single day with his passion and energy.”
Milojević joined the Warriors as an assistant in 2021, after being the head coach of Mega Vizura in his home country Serbia from 2012-21. He briefly coached Budućnost in Montenegro before joining the NBA ranks. Milojević was a three-time ABA Adriatic MVP from 2003-06.
Dr. Don Catlin, who built the first U.S. anti-doping laboratory and pioneered the science behind performance-enhancing drug testing, died of a stroke on Jan. 16 according to the New York Times He was 85.
Catlin was considered by some to be the father of drug testing in sports. He became the first director of the Olympic antidoping lab in 1982. After the 1984 Olympic Games, he augmented the lab’s drug testing, expanding its scope to clean up doping on a global scape. Catlin developed a carbon isotope ratio that helped determine whether a body produced an anabolic steroid naturally or if it came from an illegal substance. He helped to identify multiple new PEDs – including erythropoietin and norbolethone – and opened the path for doping rings like BALCO to be broken up.
Along the way, Catlin found it harder and harder to scale the operation as science and technology improved.
“I’m not saying it’s doomed to failure, but we are always playing catch-up,” Catlin said to New Scientist magazine in 2007. “I don’t see all the mass spectrometers and all the chemists in the world really being able to handle this. It is becoming very expensive to develop means to detect new drugs.”
Former NFL quarterback Norm Snead died at his Naples, Fla. home Sunday. He was 84. His brother Danny told The Virginian-Pilot that the four-time Pro Bowler was battling a lengthy illness.
Snead was a two-time First-Team All-ACC selection in 1959 and 1960 at Wake Forest, who retired his No. 16. The Virginia native was drafted second overall in the 1961 NFL Draft by Washington. He was later traded to Philadelphia for Sonny Jurgensen, a Hall of Famer who led the league in passing during Snead’s rookie year.
For his career, Snead threw for 30,797 yards, 196 TDs, and 257 INTs. He also played for the Minnesota Vikings, New York Giants, and San Francisco 49ers.
Former MLB player and manager Bud Harrelson died Jan. 11 after a long battle with Alzheimer’s disease. He was 79.
“We are saddened to learn of Mets Hall of Famer Buddy Harrelson’s passing,” team owner Steve Cohen and his wife and Alex wrote in a statement. “He was a skilled defender and spark plug on the 1969 Miracle Mets. The Gold Glove shortstop played 13 years in Queens, appearing in more games at short than anyone else in team history.”
Harrelson, a two-time All-Star, won the World Series as both a player and coach. He served as the Mets third base coach in 1986, and later managed the club from 1990-91.
The switch-hitting shortstop spent 13 of his 16 years in the bigs with New York. He also played for the Philadelphia Phillies and Texas Rangers, and batted .236 with seven home runs and 297 RBI for his career.
He famously fought with Pete Rose during the 1973 NLCS.
Harrelson was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s in 2016.
Franz Beckenbauer, one of three people to win the World Cup as both a player and coach, died Sunday. He was 78.
“It is with deep sadness that we announce that my husband and our father, Franz Beckenbauer, passed away peacefully in his sleep yesterday, Sunday, surrounded by his family,” his family said in a statement.
“We ask that you allow us to grieve in silence and refrain from asking any questions.”
Beckenbauer, a defender, won 103 caps for Germany. He was an integral part of his country’s 1972 European Championship-winning and 1974 World Cup-winning squads. He took home the 1972 and 1976 Ballon d’Or awards.
Der Kaiser, as he was known, scored 14 goals in international play, and a total of 79 for his clubs: Bayern Munich, New York Cosmos, and Hamburger SV.
Beckenbauer managed both Germany — who won the 1990 World Cup — and Bayern Munich.
“The world of FC Bayern is no longer what it used to be — suddenly darker, quieter, poorer,” the club wrote in a statement.
Mário Zagallo (Brazil), who died earlier this month, and Didier Deschamps (France) are the others who won the World Cup as both a player and coach.
Former NFL linebacker Jack Squirek, best known for his pick-six in the Raiders’ Super Bowl XVIII win, died Friday. He was 64.
“The Raiders Family is mourning the loss of Jack Squirek,” the team said. “Squirek played four years for the Raiders and was a central figure in one of pro football’s all-time great plays.”
He had been dealing with an illness over the past few months, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
Squirek spent four seasons with the Raiders, before finishing his career with the Miami Dolphins.
Four-time World Cup winner Mario Zagallo died Friday from multiple organ failure. He was 92.
Zagallo won the World Cup as a player (1958, 1962), manager (1970), and assistant coach (1994).
The forward recorded 33 caps for his country, and played for Flamengo and Botafogo. Zagallo recorded five goals for Brazil, and 76 for his clubs.
He was the second-youngest manager to win a World Cup.
Zagallo dreamed of being a pilot but couldn’t due to his poor eyesight.
Former Green Bay Packer Ken Bowman died in either December 2023, or January 2024. The offensive lineman who played under legendary coach Vince Lombardi was 81.
Bowman was a three-time NFL champion, and on the Packers’ Super Bowl I and II-winning squads. A member of the team’s Hall of Fame, he’s best remembered for his block during the Ice Bowl, which led to a game-winning TD by Bart Starr.
During his playing days, Bowman earned a J.D. from the University of Wisconsin Law School. He spent his entire NFL career with Green Bay before a single season with the Hawaiians in the since-shuttered World Football League.
Former NFL QB Frank Ryan died Monday in a Connecticut nursing home, the Cleveland Browns announced.
Ryan, the last quarterback to guide the Browns to a title, was 87.
Frank Ryan Jr. told Cleveland.com that his dad was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s.
A three-time Pro Bowler, Ryan led the league in touchdown passes in 1964, en route to a championship. He threw three touchdowns in an upset of Johnny Unitas and the Colts.
Ryan passed for 16,042 yards, and 149 TDs during his 13-year career. He was drafted by the Rams, and also played for Washington.
