According to the Suicide Awareness Voices of Education, suicide takes the lives of nearly thirty thousand Americans each year. One person dies due to suicide every 16.2 minutes; 6 people will take their own lives each hour. Over half of all suicides are completed with a firearm, and suicide is most common in the spring. Both of these are true for my favorite football player of all time; Junior Seau took his life with a bullet to the chest on May 2, 2012.
On January 19, 1969, Junior Seau was born in San Diego, California. The fifth of six children, Seau was born Tiaina Baul Seau Jr. At an early age, his family moved to American Samoa, but they returned to the mainland prior to him entering grade school. He did not speak English until the age of seven. Seau attended Oceanside High School, where he played linebacker and tight end for the Pirate football team. He was named CIF San Diego Section Defensive Player of the Year, all-state and USA Today All-USA honorable mention, as well as All-North County and Avocado League Offensive Player of the Year. In addition, he was consensus San Diego Section Basketball Player of the Year and a letterman in track and field. He was named to California’s all-academic team with a 3.6 grade-point average. He continued his football career at the University of Southern California. Seau first made his name as a terrorizing linebacker for the USC Trojans. After a slow start to his career due in part to academic concerns, Seau roared onto the scene in 1988 and 1989, collecting 107 tackles and 33 for loss. His '89 season was one of the best in USC's distinguished defensive history as he totaled 19 sacks and 27 tackles-for-loss on his way to All-American honors. He was named the 1989 Pac-10 Defensive Player of the Year.
Seau's time at USC wasn't just about numbers, though; during his two-year career the Trojans amassed a 19-4-1 record, won two Pac-10 titles and played in back-to-back Rose Bowls.
Seau's legacy lives on at USC in multiple ways, most substantially via the jersey number he wore for the Trojans, No. 55. Though not the founding member of the "55 Club", Seau's success helped turn the jersey number into a Trojan tradition. Seau became a member of the Trojan "Ring of Honor" at the L.A. Coliseum where he had first made his name.
Junior was selected in the 1st round, 5th over-all, in the 1990 NFL draft by the San Diego Chargers. After 13 seasons as a Charger, he was traded to Miami Dolphins on April 6, 2003, and released in March of 2006. In August of the same year, Seau signed a 1-day contract with the San Diego Chargers to retire from the NFL as a Charger, only to sign 4 days later with the New England Patriots. Junior Seau officially retired from the NFL on January 13, 2010, after 20 NFL seasons.
Seau was the team leader and the heart and soul of the Chargers’ defense from 1990-02. His stellar playing career was highlighted by 12 consecutive Pro Bowl selections, the most by any player in Chargers history and tied for the third-longest streak ever. Seau’s career statistics are beyond question. He appeared in 268 regular season games, including a team-record 200 as a Charger which ties him with Russ Washington for the second-most in team history. During 13 seasons in San Diego, Seau racked up 1,396 tackles, 45.5 sacks and 14 interceptions. He was the team leader in tackles in eight of his 13 seasons, averaging 116 tackles a year. Seau led the Bolts in tackles in 84 of the 200 games he played for the team and he recorded 10-or-more tackles 47 times. Among his many honors, Seau was a first-team All-Pro pick by the Associated Press six times during his career (1992-94, 1996, 1998, 2000) and a second-team selection on two occasions (1995, 1999). He was named the Chargers’ Most Valuable Player a team-record six times (1993, 1997-2001) and the Defensive Player of the Year twice (1998-99). He also was voted the Chargers’ Most Inspirational Player in 1997 and 2002. In 2009, he was chosen as one of the 50 Greatest Chargers of All-Time, and in 2000 he was named to the Chargers 40th Anniversary All-Time Team, the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s All-Decade Team for the ’90s and selected as the NFL Alumni Association’s Linebacker of the Year. Seau was also selected as the True Value NFL Man of the Year in 1994 for his leadership and contributions off the field. In Miami, he was awarded the Dolphins’ Don Shula Leadership Award following the 2003-04 seasons.
Seau’s greatness as a player on the field was equaled only by his leadership and generosity in the community. He was a loving father, an astute businessman and a community leader. Seau established the Junior Seau Foundation in 1992 to raise money and resources for programs that inspire young people to face life’s challenges with enthusiasm, hope and dignity. The Foundation’s mission is “to educate and empower young people through the support of child abuse prevention, drug and alcohol awareness, recreational opportunities, anti-juvenile delinquency efforts and complimentary educational programs.” He oversaw all the efforts of the Foundation and through his work awarded hundreds of scholarships totaling over $800,000 to college-bound students from throughout San Diego County. This December would’ve marked the 17th year Seau had led San Diego’s holiday charge, taking 250 underprivileged kids on a shopping spree at Target Mission Valley to buy gifts for friends and family through the Shop with a Jock program. The Foundation’s largest fund-raiser continues to be one of the premier events in Southern California, the Junior Seau Celebrity Golf Classic. The annual three-day event features the Legends Party, the Legends Dinner & Auction and the Golf Classic which are attended by many active and retired players from the NFL. The 20th Anniversary Junior Seau Celebrity Golf Classic was held this past March.
In October of 2010, Seau was hospitalized after the SUV he was driving plummeted off a cliff. It was reported that he had fallen asleep, and he had suffered only minor injuries. Seau's 25-year-old girlfriend told authorities that he allegedly assaulted her the night before in his home at Oceanside.
Then, on May 2, 2012, he was found in the spare bedroom of his Oceanside home with a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the chest. In his hand was a loaded, unregistered, .357 magnum revolver, with one shell near the body. There was no suicide note or indication of forced entry or foul play. There were no illegal drugs or alcohol in his system.
We forget that those that we idolize are simply people that we have unreal expectations for; we super humanize them. Athletes often develop an “exclusive athletic identity”; they cannot see their own self-worth outside of being an athlete. Fitting into society after retirement can be hard, especially when former die-hard fans barely notice their existence after they hang up their shoulder pads and cleats. It’s impossible to say what prompted Seau to take his own life at age 43, but the signs he left behind certainly point to the fact that he was a high-risk athlete entering into permanent retirement. He couldn’t cope with losing his beloved past time, career, and love. Sitting behind a desk, wearing an expensive suit, and mulling over the ins and outs of the NFL wasn’t enough. At age 43, Junior Sear had had all he could take. Rest in peace, Number 55.

Works Cited * R. Stickney (August, 20, 2012). Junior Seau Autopsy Released. Retrieved from http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/sports/Junior-Seau-Autopsy-Released-166809986.html

* Jon Saraceno (May 3, 2012). Junior Seau ‘seemed happy’. Retrieved from http://www.suntimes.com/sports/football/bears/12294985-606/junior-seau-seemed-happy.html

* Suicide Awareness Voices of Education. (November 13, 2012). Suicide Facts. Retrieved from http://www.save.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=home.viewPage&page_id=705D5DF4-055B-F1EC-3F66462866FCB4E6

* ESPN.com news services (May 3, 2012). Junior Seau dies at 43. Retrieved from http://espn.go.com/nfl/story/_/id/7882750/former-nfl-linebacker-great-junior-seau-dies-43

* Alex Marvez (May 3, 2012). Did Seau’s love for the game lead to death? Retrieved from http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/story/Junior-Seau-tragic-death-more-questions-than-answers-050212

* (December 4, 2012) http://juniorseau.org/