Former Jacksonville Jaguars Player Uche Nwaneri Found Dead at 38
Preliminary autopsy results from the Tippecanoe County Coroner show that Nwaneri may have died from a heart attack
Former Jacksonville Jaguars offensive guard Uche Nwaneri has died at the age of 38, according to multiple reports.
Nwaneri had driven from Georgia to Indiana to see his wife, according to the Lafayette Journal & Courier. She reportedly found him unresponsive in a bedroom in her West Lafayette home around 1 a.m. and called 911 on Friday.
Tippecanoe County Coroner Carrie Costello told the publication that preliminary results from an autopsy indicated no foul play was involved, and that he may have actually suffered from a heart attack instead, pending toxicology results.
“Uche was a great person,” Jordan Woy, his former agent, told CowboysSI.com. “He was a very interesting person and had deep, valued and informative thoughts on sports, politics and life.”
Nwaneri’s parents immigrated in 1973 to the U.S. from Nigeria, and in 1984 he was born in Dallas, Texas. His parents named him Uchechukwu Nwaneri, which means “God’s wish” in their native language. He committed to playing on the football team for Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana, per the Lafayette Journal & Courier.
He was selected by the Jacksonville Jaguars in the 5th round of the NFL draft in 2007 and played seven seasons with the team. He played 104 games with 92 starts with the Jaguars, per NBC Sports.
He was released from the team and signed briefly with his hometown team, the Dallas Cowboys, in 2014 before he was released during the final roster cuts that year.
After retiring from the NFL, he started a YouTube channel called “The Observant Lineman,” where he and other former players would analyze recent football games. His last show – where he broke down the Philadelphia Eagles play – was uploaded just two weeks ago.
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Many in the football community posted their tributes to the football star on Twitter including Tony Khan, the chief football strategy officer for the Jacksonville Jaguars and son of the team’s owner Shahid Khan. He said Nwaneri “forged a strong bond with the Jags fans that’s remained to this day.”