Cause of former South High, BC standout Matt Cercone's death under investigation
| Tuesday, Dec 01 2009 10:34 PM
Last Updated Tuesday, Dec 01 2009 11:30 PM
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Matt Cercone from the 2003 Jacksonville Jaguars' team headshots. (AP Photo/NFL Photos)
Matt Cercone, a South High graduate who played briefly in the NFL as a tight end with the Minnesota Vikings, died of undisclosed causes on Friday in Phoenix.
Cercone, who also played at Bakersfield College and Arizona State, died in his sleep at his residence in Phoenix, according to his father, Mike. The cause of death is unknown and under investigation, Mike Cercone said, adding there was no trauma to his body and room. He was three days shy of his 34th birthday.
"He was well liked; just a good person," Mike Cercone said. "When he came out of South High, he did not make all-league and he didn't play his first year at BC."
Matt Cercone was a JC All-American and first-team All-Western State Conference tight end as a sophomore at BC in 1996, then was a two-year letterwinner at Arizona State, where he totaled 18 receptions for 201 yards and three touchdowns.
"He was a typical Kern County kid: a hard-working, tough son of a gun," said Dallas Grider, BC's head coach when Cercone played for the Renegades.
"He got the job done and he got better and better," Grider said. "He impressed people when he'd cover punts. He had good agility for a man his size and he could run."
Cercone played two games for the Vikings in 2000 and three games in 2002, according to NFLreference.com.
He spent the spring of 2000 playing in Europe for the Barcelona Dragons of NFL Europe, where he caught six passes for 44 yards and one touchdown.
Cercone spent the 2003 training camp with the Jacksonville Jaguars and the 2004 training camp with the New England Patriots.
"He played with a lot of heart," said Jeremy Staat, a friend of Cercone's who was a teammate at BC and ASU. "He wasn't the biggest tight end in the league but he played to the best of his potential."
Staat added: "I'm still in shock. "Pat Tillman (the ex-NFL player killed by friendly fire in Afghanistan in 2004) was a friend of mine.
"How many of my friends do I have to lose? Guys my age aren't supposed to be dying."
Cercone is survived by his parents, Mike and Nancy; one sister, Bronwyn Cercone of Bakersfield; grandmothers Jane Churchwell of Bakersfield and Ila Tofsly of San Diego; daughter Brooklyn Cercone of Phoenix; and numerous aunts, uncles and cousins.
Visitation will be held Friday from 4-8 p.m. at Basham Funeral Care, 3312 Niles St.; a chapel service will be held at Basham Funeral Care at 11 a.m. Saturday.
