Jim Herbstreit, Former Ohio State Football Player, Dies at Age 77

The Ohio State Buckeyes football family lost a former captain, as Jim Herbstreit died Thursday, per Tim May of the Columbus Dispatch.

May noted Herbstreit’s son, ESPN analyst Kirk Herbstreit, said his father “died suddenly" on Thursday morning. "It’s a tough day for my family and I,” Herbstreit added.

The elder Herbstreit, who had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease, was 77 years old.

Kirk Herbstreit took to Twitter on Thursday to thank those who offered support in the aftermath of the news:

Jim Herbstreit was a captain on the 1960 Ohio State football squad that finished 7-2 and was ranked as highly as No. 3 in the Associated Press poll, per Sports-Reference.com. He played running back and defensive back and graduated from the school in 1961.

May said Ohio State head coach Woody Hayes brought Herbstreit aboard as an assistant on the coaching staff after his graduation. Former Michigan coach Bo Schembechler was also on that coaching staff at the time, and he later named Herbstreit an assistant at Miami University in 1963.

According to May, the Herbstreits were one of three father-son combinations to both be named captains for an Ohio State football team. Kirk was a captain in 1992 as one of the team’s quarterbacks.