Mike Fanning, a first-round pick in 1975, died Sunday at age 69.
Fanning made a name for himself at the University of Notre Dame, winning the national championship with the Fighting Irish in 1973 with their 11-0 record.
The following season, he was named an AP Second-team All-American – he was named to the First-team by the Walter Camp Foundation, The Sporting News, the Newspaper Enterprise Association, and Time.
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Fanning was the ninth pick to the Los Angeles Rams in 1975, where he spent eight of his 10 NFL seasons – he also spent a season in both Detroit and Seattle.
He was named to the All-Rookie team despite an injury forcing him to miss six games – he did, however, help the Rams to the NFC Championship Game that season, and made it to Super Bowl XIV four seasons later.
Fanning shared a defensive line with Hall of Famer Jack Youngblood, who spoke on his death.
"Mike was my wing man in Battle, God Bless you My Brother!!!" he tweeted late Monday night.
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Fanning had worked for the University of Tulsa's athletic department in their group ticket sales and was a special assistant for administration and operations since 2009.
"We are saddened by the news of Mike's passing," said Tulsa's vice president and director of athletics Rick Dickson. "He was a tremendous football player at Notre Dame and in the NFL and carried that competitiveness and work ethic into everyday life. He was such a likable person who worked to help TU athletics achieve success."
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His best season came in 1980, when he recorded a career-high 10 sacks. He finished with 42.5 in his career, which amassed 137 career games.