Former Alabama RB Santonio Beard Dies at Age 41 From Gunshot Wound

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Former Alabama running back Santonio Beard, who co-holds the school’s single-game rushing touchdown record, has died at the age of 41 from a gunshot wound Friday.

DeKalb County (Georgia) Police Department officials announced the news Tuesday. Mike Organ of The Tennessean provided more information:

“Officers responded to a call and found Beard and another man suffering from gunshot wounds at 8:59 p.m. on the 5700 block of Windfall Lane. Beard, 41, died on scene and the other victim, a male in his early 40s, was transported to a local hospital.

“No arrests have been made and the investigation remains active.”

Beard starred for Alabama during the 2001 and 2002 seasons. He led the team with 8.2 yards per carry (77 rushes, 633 yards, four touchdowns) in 2001.

During that season, Beard also led Alabama to a 31-7 win over Auburn in the Iron Bowl after a 199-yard, two-touchdown outing.

The former Pearl-Cohn High School (Nashville) star, who scored 91 touchdowns in high school, excelled for Alabama once again in 2002, gaining 811 rushing yards and scoring 12 touchdowns.

Five of those scores occurred en route to carrying the ball 13 times for 138 rushing yards in a 42-7 win over Ole Miss on Oct. 19, 2002.

He tied former Alabama running back Shaun Alexander’s school record for most rushing touchdowns in one game.

Beard left Alabama after the 2002 season, his junior year, and declared for the 2003 NFL draft. He went undrafted and later participated in tryouts for the CFL’s BC Lions as well as the NFL’s Green Bay Packers, Oakland Raiders and Denver Broncos but did not make a team.

Per Andy Humbles of The Tennessean, Beard retired from football at the age of 26 because of a knee injury.

At the time of an April 2019 interview with Humbles, Beard had a roofing company and also provided hereditary health screenings. In addition, he did community service and outreach work through the NFL Players Association’s Nashville Chapter.