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COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) - Fans, players and coaches, young and old, are mourning the death of one of the all-time great Ohio State and NFL football players.
Jack Tatum, a two-time All-American and the national Defensive Player of the Year as a Buckeye and an All-Pro safety for the Oakland Raiders, died Tuesday at the age of 61.
Nicknamed "The Assassin," Tatum died of a heart attack Tuesday in Oakland, according to friend and former Ohio State teammate John Hicks.
“We have lost one of our greatest Buckeyes. When you think of Ohio State defense, the first name that comes to mind is Jack Tatum. His loss touches every era of Ohio State players and fans,” head coach Jim Tressel said in a statement issued by the university.
A three-year starter, Tatum was known for his tenacity and fierce style of play and was a mainstay of the defense as OSU rolled up a 27-2 record and won the 1968 national championship, two Big Ten titles and played in two Rose Bowls.
Tatum is also known for his it that paralyzed Darryl Stingley in an NFL preseason game in 1978.
On Aug. 12, 1978, Stingley, playing for the New England Patriots, ran head-on into the hard-hitting Tatum on a crossing pattern.
The blow severed Stingley's fourth and fifth veterbrae and left the receiver paralyzed.
Tatum said he tried to visit Stingley at an Oakland hospital shortly after the collision but was turned away by Stingley's family members.
Stingley died in 2007.
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