Mosi tatupu Cause of death apparently not know

Mosi Tatupu, who played in the New England Patriots from 1978-1990 and would have been a star performer on special teams, died Tuesday at age 54, in accordance with the Honolulu Star Bulletin.

The cause of death was unidentified, in accordance with the report, this indicated that Tatupu suffered with hypertension along with other ailments.

“He was certainly one of those fun guys within the locker room who also had fun on the field,” said former Patriots quarterback Steve Grogan, who was among Tatupu’s teammates in New England. “When he went to practice, he had a smile on his face all the time because he was having fun. He enjoyed playing football. He could have played in any era, for anybody at any time. It’s a shame that he’s gone at such an early age.”

Tatupu played 13 seasons with Patriots, starring as a special teams player (making the Pro Bowl in 1986) and as a jack-of-all trades running back. He was certainly one of the best popular players of his era and also had his own cheering section at Schaefer/Sullivan Stadium called “Mosi’s Mooses.”

“I think football fans in this area appreciate a lunchpail attitude, someone who shows up for work every day and that’s what Mosi did,” Grogan said. “I think his personality, the spirit and fun he showed on the field, transferred to fans. That’s why they loved him so much.”

He rushed for 2,415 yards over his career with Patriots, scoring 18 touchdowns and averaging 3.9 yards per carry.

“He was not only a really good football player who could do a lot of different things for you, “Grogan said, “from special teams, to goal-line situations, coming out of backfield and catching the ball, blocking.”

During the time of his death, Tatupu, a native of American Samoa and considered among the greatest athletes inside the history of Hawaii, was running backs coach at Curry College in Milton, Mass. Tatupu had also coached his son Lofa Tatupu — now a linebacker with the Seattle Seahawks — at King Philip Regional High School in Wrentham, Mass.

adapted from: http://sports.espn.go.com/boston/nfl/news/story?id=4940988