Terry Paul Beasley (February 5, 1950 – January 31, 2024) was an American professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

player who was a

wide receiver A wide receiver (WR), also referred to as a wideout, and historically known as a split end (SE) or flanker (FL), is an eligible receiver in gridiron football. A key skill position of the offense (American football), offense, WR gets its name ...

for the

San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners and nicknamed the Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member ...

of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL). He played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

for the

Auburn Tigers The Auburn Tigers are the athletic teams representing Auburn University, a public four-year university located in Auburn, Alabama, United States. The Auburn Tigers compete in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) a ...

, earning

unanimous All-American The College Football All-America Team is an honorific college football all-star team compiled after each NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) season to recognize that season's most outstanding performers at their respective positions. ...

honors in 1971. He was selected by the 49ers in the first round of the

1972 NFL draft The 1972 NFL draft was the 37th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible football players. The draft was held on February 1 and 2 at the Essex House in New York City, New York. With the first overal ...

with the 19th overall pick. He was inducted into the

College Football Hall of Fame The College Football Hall of Fame is a hall of fame and interactive Tourist attraction, attraction devoted to college football, college American football. The National Football Foundation (NFF) founded the Hall in 1951 to immortalize the players ...

in 2002.

Career

Beasley was born in

Montgomery, Alabama Montgomery is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Alabama. Named for Continental Army major general Richard Montgomery, it stands beside the Alabama River on the Gulf Coastal Plain. The population was 2 ...

, on February 5, 1950. After graduating from Robert E. Lee High School in Montgomery, he attended

Auburn University Auburn University (AU or Auburn) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Auburn, Alabama, United States. With more than 26,800 undergraduate students, over 6,100 post-graduate students, and a tota ...

, where he played

for the

as a

. He lettered from 1969 to 1971. In his college career, Beasley amassed 141 receptions, for program records of 2,507 yards and 29

touchdown A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Scoring a touchdown grants the team that scored it 6 points. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchd ...

s while playing with

Heisman Trophy The Heisman Memorial Trophy ( ; also known simply as the Heisman) is awarded annually since 1935 to the top player in college football. It is considered the most prestigious award in the sport and is presented by the Heisman Trophy Trust followin ...

-winning quarterback Pat Sullivan. His 29 career receiving touchdowns were also an

Southeastern Conference The Southeastern Conference (SEC) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference whose member institutions are located primarily in the South Central United States, South Central and Southeastern United States. Its 16 members in ...

(SEC) record at the time. He was an

All-American The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

in 1970 and 1971. He led the SEC in receptions, receiving yards and scoring in 1970 with 52 receptions, 1,051 receiving yards and 72 points. In 1971, he was named the College Pass Receiver of the Year by the

Touchdown Club of Columbus The Touchdown Club of Columbus was founded in Columbus, Ohio, in 1956 by Sam B. Nicola at the request of state auditor James A. Rhodes, who later became governor of the state. Nicola served as the club's president until his death in 1993. More ...

. Beasley is one of three Auburn players to have their number retired by the team, along with Sullivan and

Bo Jackson Vincent Edward "Bo" Jackson (born November 30, 1962) is an American former professional baseball and American football, football player. He is the only professional athlete in history to be named an All-star#Sports, All-Star in Major professio ...

. He was elected into the

in 2002. The

selected Beasley in the first round of the

. He spent the duration of his short professional career there, for three seasons, before injuries forced his retirement following the 1975 season. In 29 career games, he had 38 receptions for 570 yards and three touchdowns. Beasley estimated that he suffered at least 52

concussion A concussion, also known as a mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI), is a head injury that temporarily affects brain functioning. Symptoms may include headache, dizziness, difficulty with thinking and concentration, sleep disturbances, a brief ...

s during his football career.

Personal life

Beasley married Joanne Teel on April 5, 1970. They were married for 15 years and had four daughters. His second wife was Priscilla McClure. They had one son. He later married Marlene Brown. The two met in 1992, while Marlene was working as his psychiatric nurse who helped treat Beasley's injuries. They had no children together. Beasley and his wife Marlene joined a

class-action lawsuit A class action is a form of lawsuit. Class Action may also refer to: * ''Class Action'' (film), 1991, starring Gene Hackman and Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio * Class Action (band), a garage house band * "Class Action" (''Teenage Robot''), a 2002 e ...

against the NFL relating to head injuries suffered during the players' careers. He developed health problems from repeated concussions. Beasley stated as part of the lawsuit that he suffered from "memory loss, headaches, anxiety and sleeplessness" as a result of his football-related injuries. He spent most of May 2013 in the

intensive care unit An intensive care unit (ICU), also known as an intensive therapy unit or intensive treatment unit (ITU) or critical care unit (CCU), is a special department of a hospital or health care facility that provides intensive care medicine. An inten ...

of Brookwood Medical Center in

Birmingham, Alabama Birmingham ( ) is a city in the north central region of Alabama, United States. It is the county seat of Jefferson County, Alabama, Jefferson County. The population was 200,733 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List ...

, due to problems with his health that his family believed were the result of his concussions. The lawsuit resulted in a settlement in December 2016. Beasley died of a suspected suicide at his home in

Moody, Alabama Moody is a city located in St. Clair County, Alabama. The city was founded in 1907, and it was named after a local businessman named Epps Moody. The population was 13,170 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It is located about 22 mile ...

, on January 31, 2024, at the age of 73.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Beasley, Terry 1950 births 2024 deaths All-American college football players American football wide receivers Auburn Tigers football players Players of American football from Montgomery, Alabama College Football Hall of Fame inductees San Francisco 49ers players 2024 suicides

Career

Personal life

See also

References