Former ACU Lineman Grant Feasel Passes Away At 52
By: ACU Athletics
Updated: July 15, 2012
ROCKWALL --
Former ACU football standout Grant Feasel - one of the most dominating
offensive lineman in Lone Star Conference history - passed away Sunday
morning. He was 52.
Funeral arrangements are pending and no decisions had been made as of late Sunday afternoon.
Feasel, an
all-America lineman for the Wildcats who later played eight seasons in
the NFL with the Colts, Vikings and Seahawks, was selected in 1997 to
the NCAA Division II Team of the Quarter Century.
Feasel arrived in
Abilene in the summer of 1978 as a 6-5, 215-pound offensive tackle from
Barstow, Calif. By the time he left ACU as a 1983 graduate he had
grown into a 6-7, 295-pound behemoth who earned
almost every conceivable award available to an NCAA Division II
offensive lineman.
He was also
selected by the Baltimore Colts in the sixth round of the 1983 NFL
draft, the same draft that saw the Colts select Stanford quarterback
John Elway as the No. 1 overall selection.
"When Grant first
arrived at ACU he was a tall, skinny kid," ACU director of athletics
emeritus and former head football coach Wally Bullington recalled. "But
he worked hard in the weight room and became,
in my opinion, maybe the best offensive lineman we've ever had here.
"He was an
extremely hard worker and dedicated player and was a great team player,"
Bullington said. "I was always impressed with what a great team player
he was, and I know he must have been a pleasure
to coach."
While he was at
ACU, Feasel was a first team all-America as a senior in 1982 by both the
Associated Press and the American Football Coaches' Association. He
was drafted by the Colts after earning all-LSC,
LSC Offensive Lineman of the Year, academic all-conference and GTE
second team academic all-America honors in 1982. He also won the
prestigious NCAA Post-Graduate Scholarship in 1982.
Feasel was
selected to the ACU Sports Hall of Fame as a member of the Class of
1994-95 and was also selected to the LSC Team of the Decade for the
1980s.
"I remember
watching film of Grant, and he had good size, good quickness and really
good feet," said then-ACU head coach Dewitt Jones, who recruited Feasel
to ACU. We saw a lot of ability on the film.
He could run and he had good feet. He was a good high school
quarterback, but he came here because his brother Greg was already at
ACU.
"He didn't play
much as a freshman, but he developed over the years into a really good
player," Jones said. "He came in and worked hard and turned into an
outstanding player at ACU, and then went on to
have a really good NFL career."
Following his ACU
career, Feasel - whose brother, Greg, also played at ACU and in the NFL
and is a member of the ACU Sports Hall of Fame - embarked on his NFL
career. He played 11 games for the Colts as
a rookie in 1983 and then played 15 games - starting three for the
Vikings and Colts in 1984.
He went to
Seattle as a free agent in 1987 and found a home. He became the
Seahawks' starting center in 1989 and from 1989-91 he played in and
started 47 games, including playing every offensive snap in
the 1989 season.
Upon his
retirement, Feasel was feted at a dinner in Fort Worth sponsored by
ACU. Former ACU and NFL teammates spoke in tribute to Feasel, including
his brother, Greg, who thanked ACU and its influence
on both brothers.
"Grant and I are
what are today because of what we learned from the people in this room,"
Greg Feasel said at the Fort Worth Club on Aug. 23, 1994. "We learned
to exceed standards, see past problems for
solutions and to have respect for God's creation. Grant and I were
blessed to have attended and played at ACU."
Grant echoed those sentiments when it was his turn to speak.
"This day is more
than a dream come true," Grant Feasel said. "I'm nobody special. I
can give you a list of names as long as my arm of people who have been
helped by ACU. It's an unbelievable place,
and I'm proof of what it can do for people."
