Terry Beasley Dies at Age 73 of Apparent Suicide; Former Auburn WR Was CFB HOFer

Former Auburn and San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Terry Beasley, a College Football Hall of Famer, died on Wednesday after what authorities were describing as a potential suicide, according to the Associated Press. He was 73.

"We got a call at 5:20 (Wednesday) afternoon and officers found Mr. Beasley with what appeared to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound," Moody Police chief Reece Smith said.

Beasley reportedly suffered a number of concussions and head injuries during his career and was one of the plaintiffs in the head trauma lawsuit against the NFL that was eventually settled in 2016. Per the AP, Beasley said he suffered from "memory loss, headaches, anxiety and sleeplessness" due to the injuries he suffered playing football.

At Auburn, he was an All-America selection in both 1970 and 1971 and accumulated 2,640 yards from scrimmage and 30 touchdowns across three seasons.

"Pat Sullivan was the leader, the quarterback, the Heisman Trophy winner, but the guy who made that whole passing game go was Beasley," former Auburn athletic director and sports information director David Housel said in the school's statement. "He is an Auburn legend. He is the standard by which all other Auburn receivers will be measured. Auburn's had some good ones, but they've never had one like the Mechanical Man."

"He was a phenomenal player," Beasley's former teammate, Terry Henley, added. "He could play the game today. In the offenses they run today, he would be so explosive."

Beasley was then a first-round pick of the San Francisco 49ers in 1972 but injuries limited him to three seasons. In total, he caught 38 passes for 570 yards and three touchdowns in his NFL career.

But his impact at Auburn was immense.

"Words do not describe his importance to Auburn," sports radio personality Paul Finebaum told Mark Heim of AL.com on Thursday. "I think if you look at the Mount Rushmore of Auburn football players, he is on there. I know you are like, 'Wow, you have Cam Newton, Bo Jackson and Pat Sullivan,' but he would be next. He was that important."