 Herrion with the Utah Utes in 2003 | |
| No. 76 | |
|---|---|
| Position | Offensive guard |
| Personal information | |
| Born | (1981-12-15)December 15, 1981 Fort Worth, Texas, U.S. |
| Died | August 20, 2005(2005-08-20) (aged 23) Denver, Colorado, U.S. |
| Listed height | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) |
| Listed weight | 320 lb (145 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Polytechnic (Fort Worth, Texas) |
| College | Utah |
| NFL draft | 2004: undrafted |
| Career history | |
* Offseason and/or practice squad member only | |
Thomas Lovell Herrion (December 15, 1981 – August 20, 2005) was an Americanfootballoffensive guard in theNational Football League (NFL) for theDallas Cowboys andSan Francisco 49ers. He also was a member of theHamburg Sea Devils inNFL Europe. He playedcollege football at theUniversity of Utah.
Herrion attendedPolytechnic High School. He was a four-year starter atleft tackle.
He competed in thediscus throw andshot put, as a sophomore and junior. He playedcenter on thebasketball team as a sophomore.
Herrion enrolled atKilgore College, to play under head coach Jimmy Rieves at thejunior college level. As a freshman, he contributed to theRed River Bowl victory and the 2000 conference championship.
As a sophomore, he was part of a team that finished undefeated with a 12–0 record and a No. 4 national JUCO ranking, while receiving first-team All-Southwest Junior College Football Conference and honorable-mention JUCO All-America honors.
As a junior, he transferred to theUniversity of Utah. He appeared in 10 games atright tackle, starting the final 3 contests.[1]
As a senior, he played under new head coachUrban Meyer. He started all 12 games at left guard and received honorable-mention All-Mountain West Conference honors, while blocking for futureSan Francisco 49ers teammate and number one overall draft pickquarterbackAlex Smith. He contributed to the team'sMountain West Conference championship andLiberty Bowl win. He finished his college career after appearing in a total of 22 games.[1]
Herrion was signed as anundrafted free agent by theDallas Cowboys after the2004 NFL draft on May 20. On September 5, 2004, he was waived and later signed to thepractice squad on September 14.[2] On September 30, 2004, he was released from the practice squad.[3]
On December 9, 2004, he was signed by theSan Francisco 49ers to thepractice squad.[4]
On January 5, 2005, he signed a reserve/futures contract with the 49ers.[5] In February 2005, he was allocated to theHamburg Sea Devils ofNFL Europe, where he started 10 games at left tackle and received an invitation to attend the 49ers training camp.[1]
Shortly after an exhibition game against theDenver Broncos on August 20, 2005, Herrion collapsed in the locker room and was transported to St. Anthony's Central Hospital inDenver where he was pronounced dead. The cause of death was later determined to beischaemic heart disease, or (according to a subsequent examination of the autopsy report)hypertrophic cardiomyopathy.[6][7]
He was considered to be theNFL's fourth football-related death afterDetroit Lions wide receiverChuck Hughes died of a heart attack in a 1971 game against theChicago Bears,St. Louis Cardinals tight endJ.V. Cain had a fatal heart attack during training camp in 1979 andMinnesota Vikings offensive tackleKorey Stringer died of heatstroke during training camp in 2001.[8]
On September 2, 2005, the 49ers established the Thomas Herrion Memorial Award, which will be given to the player who best exemplifies his spirit.[9]
In 2006, theKilgore College TRIO Learning Center was dedicated to Herrion's memory and renamed as the "Thomas L. Herrion TRIO Learning Center." In 2018, he was inducted into theKilgore College Athletics Hall of Fame.[10]
Herrion was a musician who played the drums in his church band. On the front page of theSan Francisco Chronicle, former 49er coachMike Nolan commended Herrion for being "musical".[11]