Leon Bender

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Leon Bender
refer to caption
Bender with the Oakland Raiders in 1998
No. 91
Position:Defensive tackle
Personal information
Born:(1975-08-08)August 8, 1975
Ontario, California, U.S.
Died:May 30, 1998(1998-05-30) (aged 22)
Marietta, Georgia, U.S.
Career information
High school:Santana (Santee, California)
College:Washington State
NFL draft:1998 / Round: 2 / Pick: 31
Career history
 * Offseason and/or practice squad member only
Career highlights and awards
  • 1997 All-American Dream Team selection
    by the Sports Network
  • Alamo Bowl Champion (1994)
  • 1997 First-team All-Pac-10 Conference choice
    by the Gridiron Report
  • Santana Sultans no.77 retired
Career NFL statistics
Games played:--
Games started:--
Fumble recoveries:--
Player stats at NFL.com

Leon Bender (August 8, 1975 – May 30, 1998) was an American football defensive tackle, was selected in the second round of the 1998 NFL Draft (31st overall) by the Oakland Raiders.[1][2] He played college football at Washington State under head coach Mike Price; in his senior season of 1997, the Cougars won the Pac-10 title and played in the Rose Bowl, WSU's first return to the game in 67 years.[3] He graduated in 1993 from Santana High School in Santee, California, east of San Diego.[4]

Death

Six weeks after the draft, Bender unexpectedly died at age 22 before gaining the opportunity to play a NFL game. He was found dead in the home of sports agent Terry Bolar in Marietta, Georgia,[4][5][6][7] northwest of Atlanta. Bender was visiting Bolar, an associate of Eugene Parker, Bender's agent. He had signed a five-year, $3.45 million contract a few weeks earlier,[5] and was in Georgia to train for an upcoming Raiders' mini-camp.[4]

The Cobb County medical examiner's office confirmed on June 10 that a seizure disorder was the cause of death. Bender had been previously diagnosed with epilepsy, known by Washington State and the Raiders, but not publicized; his Cougar teammates were not aware of it.[4][5] Survived by his wife and daughter, he was buried in California at Singing Hills Memorial Park in El Cajon.

References

  1. ^ "Manning No. 1, Leaf gladly No. 2". Lewiston Morning Tribune. staff and wire reports. April 19, 1998. p. 1B.
  2. ^ Jewell, Mark (April 20, 1998). "Draft goes over well in Pullman". Moscow-Pullman Daily News. (Idaho-Washington). Associated Press. p. 1C.
  3. ^ Geranios, Nicholas K. (June 2, 1998). "WSU to honor Bender". Moscow-Pullman Daily News. (Idaho-Washington). Associated Press. p. 1C.
  4. ^ a b c d "Bender found dead". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). staff and wire reports. May 31, 1998. p. 1B.
  5. ^ a b c "Cause of death remains unknown". Moscow-Pullman Daily News. (Idaho-Washington). wire reports. June 1, 1998. p. 1C.
  6. ^ "Raiders' rookie dies". Today's News Herald. (Lake Havasu City, Arizona). Associated Press. May 31, 1998. p. 16A.
  7. ^ Blanchette, John (June 1, 1998). "Bender made persistence pay". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). p. C1.

External links


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