Terry Beasley, a legendary wide receiver for Auburn University and member of the College Football Hall of Fame, passed away at his Moody home on Wednesday night, according to St. Clair County Coroner Dennis Russell, who spoke with Carol Robinson of AL.com.
Moody Police Chief Reece Smith said that Beasley’s death is being looked at as a potential suicide.
Officers were sent to his home this evening at around 5:20 p.m. He appeared to have self-inflicted a gunshot wound when he was discovered dead inside the house. We are now keeping the Beasley family in our prayers as this issue is still being investigated, Smith continued.
Beasley was seventy-three.
Beasley, who was born in Montgomery, played quarterback Pat Sullivan, the winner of the Heisman Trophy, at Auburn University from 1968 to 1971. Beasley played with the San Francisco 49ers from 1972 to 1975 after being selected in the first round of the 1972 NFL Draft.
Beasley, who was elected into the National Football Foundation’s Hall of Fame in 2002, was part of “one of college football’s greatest pass combinations” when paired with Sullivan, according to the National Football Foundation.
Beasley participated on Auburn’s freshmen squad in 1968 before being allowed to play on the varsity squad the following year.
In 1969, Beasley caught 34 passes for 610 yards and six touchdowns as a sophomore. Beasley became Auburn’s top receiver in his junior year after hauling in 52 passes for 1,051 yards and 11 touchdowns.
Beasley continues to hold several Auburn program marks to this day, such as most touchdown catches (29), consecutive games with a touchdown catch (8), career receiving yards (2,507), and most games with 100 yards in a season (6) and career (12).
Beasley played high school ball for Montgomery’s Robert E. Lee High School before going on to have three successful seasons at Auburn.
Beasley’s professional career was cut short due to what is thought to have been at least 19 concussions throughout his playing career.
Due to health issues Beasley’s family thought were related to the concussions he sustained during his playing career, Beasley spent the greater part of a month in an intensive care unit in 2013.
According to a 2013 story by Ryan Wood of the Opelia-Auburn News, “Beasley has chronic traumatic encephalopathy, the same disease former NFL linebacker Junior Seau and many other pro football players suffered.” According to the doctors, his brain resembles Swiss cheese. Every concussion left a void behind.
In a lawsuit against the NFL, Beasley and numerous other players were named as plaintiffs. In court documents, Beasley’s wife, Marlene Beasley, stated that her husband had experienced “multiple past traumatic brain injuries with symptoms including but not limited to, memory loss, headaches, anxiety and sleeplessness.”
A comprehensive settlement deal was struck in 2016 as a result of the case.
“The NFL consented to an uncapped compensation fund that may pay over 20,000 retired players in return for the dismissal of all concussion-related lawsuits against the organization, without acknowledging any wrongdoing. It was anticipated at the time that the NFL would eventually spend more than $1 billion, according to a 2021 article by Jodi Balsam of Law in Sport.
If you or someone you know is thinking about taking their own life, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255, text the word “TALK” to 741741 to reach the Crisis Text Line, or use the online chat feature at suicidepreventionlifeline.org. The 988 Crisis & Suicide Hotline is open around-the-clock.
