Former College Football Star Tragically Dies At Age 38

The college football community got hit with some tragic news on Tuesday night.

The University of South Florida Football program is in mourning this week over the loss of Mike Ford.

The former running back passed away, according to Tampa Bay Times’ Joey Knight, on Tuesday afternoon. He was just 38-years-old.

Ford was regarded as one of the top prospects from the Sarasota-Bradenton area when he joined USF’s football team. For a stretch of eleven games, he ran for more than 200 yards.

Mike Ford was a Florida native who was a standout running back in high school before taking his talents to the college football landscape. He was from Sarasota. Ford had his most outstanding season as a senior and was a five-star recruit at running back. In 2004, Ford gained 2,836 yards and 37 touchdowns from rushing. Ford had his most extraordinary performance with 368 yards of rushes against Naples Lely.

The ‘Built Ford tough’ running style was well-known for the former South Florida running back. In 2007, Mike Ford had a breakthrough season as a rookie, leading the Bulls to an Associated Press Poll ranking of number two. Ford scored 12 running touchdowns to lead the squad.

Mike Ford Dismissed From USF Team Which Ended His College Football Career

Ford, who played for the Bulls from 2007 to 2009, amassed 1,502 career running yards and 23 rushing touchdowns on 331 attempts over 34 games during his collegiate tenure which tied for the fifth-most in program history. Throughout his career, he averaged 10.4 yards per carry, which was the fifth-highest in program history, via GoUSFBulls.com.

During his senior season, Ford was abruptly dismissed from the Bulls football team for breaking program rules, but there was never much clarity on the incident.

“To all of my family, friends and fans, I made a mistake that I really, really regret and I apologize for that,” said Ford.

Even though his college football career came to an early end, his production while playing at USF can’t be overlooked.

In three seasons Ford rushed for 1,502 yards and 23 touchdowns with the USF football program. In his last game played Ford was named the MVP of the 2010 International Bowl after rushing for 207 yards and one touchdown in the Bulls win over Northern Illinois.

“I am responsible for my own actions. Please forgive me for I am only human. This will not be the last of Mike Ford. I will continue my dream, and I will graduate. Thank you to coach Jim Leavitt, coach Skip Holtz and coach Carl Franks. Once again, I apologize and will continue to push forward.”

“I am disappointed for Mike more than anything else,” said USF head coach Skip Holtz. “I hope that he learns some important life lessons from this experience at USF. A lot of people care deeply for him. He needs to realize that he can respond to this adversity in a positive way and still fulfill many of his goals as a person, student and football player. I want the very best for Mike as he moves forward with is life and I will be here to support him.”

Despite the numbers he put up in high school and the University of South Florida during his college football career, Mike Ford could never catch his footing in the NFL as he went undrafted and never signed on with any team.

After his time with the Bulls ended, Ford went on to play for Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League.

Ford ended up playing adult amateur football after his brief Canadian Football League stint for the Sarasota Millionaires and Southwest Florida Gladiators.

In 2017, he would transition from the field to the boxing ring under the tutelage of Florida Boxing Hall of Fame coach Harold Wilen, per Yourobserver.com.

As of now, there are no details on Ford’s death, but the college football community is mourning as they lost one of their own.