Former Aggies Safety Terry Kiel Killed In Car Accident

[ILS1]

SAN DIEGO - Former Chargers safety Terrence Kiel was killed after he was thrown from a Chevy sedan he was driving, police said Saturday.

Kiel, 27, was driving alone after leaving a party at about 10:15 Friday night when he hit a wall in San Diego's upscale Scripps Ranch neighborhood and was thrown from the car, police Sgt. Alan Hayward said.

Kiel was barely breathing when paramedics reached him and he died about an hour later, Hayward said.

Friends had tried to keep Kiel from driving home from the party, Hayward said, and witnesses told police he appeared to be driving in the wrong direction when he crashed.

Police would not know whether Kiel had been under the influence of drugs or alcohol until toxicology tests were performed, Hayward said.

A second-round draft pick out of Texas A&M in 2003, Kiel played four years in the NFL from 2003-2006, all with the Chargers.

In February 2007 he pleaded guilty to felony and misdemeanor drug charges for shipping prescription cough syrup to Texas, the most significant of several scrapes with the law.

He was released by the team after his plea.

Kiel had been led off the practice field and arrested in the locker room by Drug Enforcement Administration agents in September 2006, suspected of shipping at least two parcels of prescription cough syrup, apparently to be mixed with soft drinks to make a concoction known as "lean."

The felony charges were later dropped after he completed community service, and he was serving three years probation for the misdemeanor charges.

He was cited for urinating in public outside a San Diego nightclub in January 2007, but the city dropped that charge.




Story Link (http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080705/ap_on_sp_fo_ne/fbn_former_player_killed)

[eppy 12]

condolances to family. seems to have had some demons:(

[pirate4state]

:(

[zebrablue2]

very sad news indeed...

[mistanice]

Former Lufkin Panther standout and NFL safety Terrence Kiel was killed after he was thrown from a sedan he was driving on the Fourth of July, police said Saturday.

Kiel, 27, was driving alone after leaving a party at about 10:15 p.m. PT Friday night when he hit a wall in San Diego's upscale Scripps Ranch neighborhood and was thrown from the car, police Sgt. Alan Hayward said.

Kiel was barely breathing when paramedics reached him and he died about an hour later, Hayward said.

Friends had tried to keep Kiel from driving home from the party, Hayward said, and witnesses told police he appeared to be driving in the wrong direction when he crashed.

Police would not know whether Kiel had been under the influence of drugs or alcohol until toxicology tests were performed, Hayward said.

Kiel was a 1999 graduate of Lufkin High School, where he had a stellar career with the Panthers.

That success drew the attention of Texas A&M, where he was a standout in his four years with the Aggies.

He was taken in the second round of the NFL Draft by the San Diego Chargers, where he went on to have four successful years between 2003 and 2006.

"This is just a very, very tragic and sad situation," said Lufkin head coach John Outlaw, who also coached Kiel in his time with the Panthers. "Terrence was a great player. Once he stepped on the field, he was all business. He really did a lot of great things here."

Kiel was an honorable mention all-district selection as a junior for the Panthers in 1997. As a senior, he was a first-team all-district defensive back as the Panthers advanced to the Class 5A Region II Finals before being eliminated in a thrilling 17-14 decision to Lake Highlands at SFA's Homer Bryce Stadium.

From there, he moved on to Texas A&M, where he saw action in all four seasons. He led the team in interceptions with four in 2000 before leading the team in tackles in 2001 and 2002.

He finished his career at A&M with 253 tackles and eight interceptions.

Those numbers, along with his tremendous athletic ability, caught the attention of many NFL scouts, and he was taken with the 62nd overall pick in the 2003 season.

On the field, Kiel had a solid NFL career, making 278 tackles and four interceptions in his four years with the team. His best season came in 2004 when he made a career high 97 tackles.

However, his NFL career was also marred by several off-the-field incidents.

He was shot three times in an attempted carjacking in Houston in 2003.

In February of 2007 he pleaded guilty to felony and misdemeanor drug charges for shipping prescription cough syrup to Texas, the most significant of several scrapes with the law.

Kiel had been led off the practice field and arrested in the locker room by Drug Enforcement Administration agents in September 2006, suspected of shipping at least two parcels of prescription cough syrup, apparently to be mixed with soft drinks to make a concoction known as "lean."

After pleading guilty to those charges, Kiel was released by the Chargers and was unable to latch on with any other NFL teams.

The felony charges were later dropped after he completed community service, and he was serving three years probation for the misdemeanor charges at the time of his death.

He was cited for urinating in public outside a San Diego nightclub in January 2007, but the city dropped that charge.

"He was a great person, but he started making some bad decisions," Outlaw said. "And unfortunately he just never stopped making those bad decisions."

In spite of his off-the-field incidents, Outlaw said he would remember the positive times in Kiel's life.

"He had some great years in his life," Outlaw said. "Terrence was a great player at A&M, and he went on to be an NFL player. I want to focus on those great years that he had. He's not the only one that's ever made some bad decisions."

Services for Terrence Kiel are pending with Colonial Mortuary.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

www.lufkindailynews.com

[K-MAC Chuck]

We talked about this on the radio show this morning...

*The story said he was "thrown" from the vehicle...meaning, he was NOT wearing his seat belt..

*There were those trying to keep him from driving...

I just don't understand how - with ALL these kinds of stories in the sports media (of which I'm a member) - ANYONE (athlete or otherwise) would even think of driving while under any kind of influence...

Both Kiel and Cedric Benson could afford to have someone drive them home, be it a friend, car service, taxi, whatever..

It's just so unbelievable...

[Emerson1]

Originally posted by K-MAC Chuck

I just don't understand how - with ALL these kinds of stories in the sports media (of which I'm a member) - ANYONE (athlete or otherwise) would even think of driving while under any kind of influence...

Because they are under the influence and think they are fine.

[K-MAC Chuck]

Originally posted by Emerson1
Because they are under the influence and think they are fine.

And they have that "air of invincibility"...

[Emerson1]

Originally posted by K-MAC Chuck
And they have that "air of invincibility"...
And if you get caught you might spend a night in jail and get your license suspended

[Gobbla2001]

it's simple: Alcohol alters the mind and causes people to make really bad decisions... you never know, he may have planned to stay the night there, but a little too much to drink makes some people not see a problem with getting behind the wheel...

it's sad when things like this happen... let's just be thankful it was only him...

[Gobbla2001]

Originally posted by Emerson1
spend a night in jail and get your license suspended

that's the easy part...

[Phil C]

Sad news. RIP Terry. :(