Don Hasselbeck, the father of former NFL quarterbacks Matt and Tim Hasselbeck, who played tight end for nine NFL seasons, died Monday. He was 70.
Matt Hasselbeck said his father suffered cardiac arrest, and thanked neighbors and medical professionals who came to his aid.
‘He was a great husband, father, grandfather, friend, coach, player, coworker, artist, mentor and storyteller,’ Matt Hasselbeck tweeted. ‘Despite being an All-American at Colorado and a Super Bowl Champion with the Raiders, what we are most proud of is the leader he was for our family. … There is a 6’’’ 7′ hole in our hearts. He will be so missed by so many. We are beyond grateful that he was our dad and look forward to Heaven and being all together again.’
Don Hasselbeck, a Cincinnati native who starred in football and basketball at La Salle High School, had 107 catches for 1,542 yards and 18 touchdowns in 123 regular-season NFL games.
Hasselbeck, who starred in college at Colorado, was drafted in the second round of the 1977 NFL draft by the New England Patriots. He played six seasons in New England.
His best season as a pro was 1981, when he started all 14 games in which he played for the Patriots and led the team in receptions with 46 and receiving yards with 808 yards, scoring six touchdowns.
Traded to the Los Angeles Raiders in 1983, Hasselbeck blocked an extra-point attempt in the team’s 38-9 win in Super Bowl 18 against Washington.
Hasselbeck played the 1984 season for the Minnesota Vikings and the 1985 season for the New York Giants before retiring.
Hasselbeck and long-time Xavier broadcaster Joe Sunderman were part of the 1972-73 La Salle basketball team that won the school’s first Greater Cincinnati League (now Greater Catholic League) outright championship in any varsity sport.