http://abc7.com/news/ex-nfl-player-lawrence-phillips-dies-in-prison-of-suspected-suicide/1157646/
Well he is one of the Rams players during the time the team just moved to Saint Louis from Los Angeles.
Later on Lawrence Philips had a criminal record for assault and later murder in prison over a cell mate.
Well this is insane is an understatement.
He played for Nebraska in college. He got in some trouble then too, although I don't remember the particulars, I do recall considerable controversy that his status as a football player considerably ameliorated whatever punishment was meted out. The Nebraska coaching staff in particular, Tom Osbourn as I recall was criticized for 'coddling' Lawrence.
Looks like there might have been some merit in the criticism . . . .
I seem to recall seeing something, probably in the Omaha World Herald, which said Tom Osborne thought his biggest mistake was allowing Lawrence Phillips back onto the team. This was the 1995 Huskers, which is arguably the greatest college team ever.
I believe he was also charged with murdering his cell mate, but the trial hadn't happened yet.
Quote from: DandyDan on January 14, 2016, 07:30:41 AM
I believe he was also charged with murdering his cell mate, but the trial hadn't happened yet.
A judge ruled the day before the suicide that there was enough evidence to try Phillips for his cellmate's death.
I was wondering if his problems stemmed from concussions or near concussions, but it seems he was trouble prone from the git go. Still, I'd wonder if maybe playing exacerbated his issues.
I reviewed some info on his Cornhusker experience and there really was some considerable controversy about his 'special handling' in regards to his problems. Osborn is certainly widely regarded, but his reputation, at least in this regard, is taking a hit.
Quote from: Jardine on January 14, 2016, 11:43:26 AM
I was wondering if his problems stemmed from concussions or near concussions, but it seems he was trouble prone from the git go. Still, I'd wonder if maybe playing exacerbated his issues.
I reviewed some info on his Cornhusker experience and there really was some considerable controversy about his 'special handling' in regards to his problems. Osborn is certainly widely regarded, but his reputation, at least in this regard, is taking a hit.
I was thinking the same thing but then again we can't link Philips directly with any mental issues at this time. Or even CTE in the brain. If only the attorneys and law enforcement and doctors that investigated Philips in the past had the ability to investigate his crimes and tie some circumstantial evidence to mental issues
I'm amazed the 'winning lotto ticket' of being a very high potential NFL star was insufficient motivation to Philips to go get some help.
Did he like thumping women that much ??
And strangling his cell mate, an apparent tough hombre on his own, is astonishing.
What a sad coincidence for this to happen the exact same week that his old team moves back to Los Angeles :no:
The one black mark on Osborne's career, at least as a coach.
Phillips had a terrible childhood. Typical broken home story, was fostered.... I guess when he was recruited that he was not assumed to be any more of a risk than any other player coming out of the area. Osborne had been reassured by his coach and some of his teachers that there wasn't anything particularly unruly about him.
I think there were one or two minor incidents his first two years at Nebraska that suggested he had a temper....he ended up missing parts of one or two games as a freshman for something that had happened in the off-season.
The incident that blew everything up was after the second game of his junior year against Michigan State; that night he had apparently dragged his girlfriend down some stairs. Someone had tipped him off that she was cheating on him.... obviously no excuse. One of the really sad things about it is that some people later actually tried to blame her.
Initially Osborne suspended him. He missed the next six games. The rationale for bringing him back was that Osborne thought he could be "saved" by football..... he was worried kicking him out of the program for good would send him off the rails. The deal he made was that he had to meet several requirements for reinstatement, among them anger management, personal counselling, perfect attendance at classes, good grades, etc.... he was brought back after he had completed all of those things. I was at the first game he came back, against Iowa State; he came in the second quarter to a mixed reaction and had a few carries, but wasn't really a factor in the game, which they won like 70-14 or something.
The controversy reached its head when it was announced he would start in the Fiesta Bowl... that was when all the "win at all costs" stuff came out, the CBS special, all that. The reason Osborne put him in the Fiesta Bowl was so he could leave for the NFL and get drafted. He didn't want him back for his senior year.
Obviously one could argue all day that he shouldn't have got that opportunity, and in hindsight, he probably shouldn't have. Osborne said later that he had recommended to the Rams that Lawrence remain under further counselling and supervision, and that that didn't really happen.
Unfortunately, it will go down as one of the all-time pure wastes of talent I've ever seen.
The one thing that bothers me about it now is that people insist that that team couldn't win without him. I saw that team play eight games with my own eyes. They played three-quarters of that season without him. The fourth-string running back was Ahman Green. They weren't losing to anybody. Those guys lost three games in five seasons.
Obviously, Lawrence just couldn't get it under control. It is what it is..... a colossal waste of talent.
Osborne says that was the most difficult season of his career, even though it was far and away his best team.