Doug Flutie’s parents both suffer heart attacks, die on the same day
Posted Nov 19, 2015 05:09:38 AM.
This article is more than 5 years old.
by Alanna Kelly
Football legend Doug Flutie lost both of his parents on Wednesday, he said on his Facebook page.
“This morning my family experienced the tragic loss of my father, Dick and my mother, Joan,” he said on Facebook around 3:45 p.m.
Flutie said that his father had been ill and died of a heart attack in the hospital and his mother had a sudden heart attack an hour later and passed away.
“They say you can die of a broken heart and I believe it,” he said.
Flutie, 53, won the Heisman Trophy in 1984 the year of his “Hail Mary” pass to win the game against Miami – considered to be among the greatest plays in collegiate sports history. He played eight seasons in the Canadian Football League and is regarded as one of the greatest quarterbacks in CFL history.
“I would like to honour my parents for all that they did throughout my and my brothers’ and sister’s lives,” Flutie said in the Facebook post. “My parents were always there for their children, from the days my Dad coached us as kids and Mom would work the concession stands, through to this morning.”
Thousands of people have written their condolences on his post.
“On behalf of me and the entire Flutie family, I would like to thank you all for your well wishes and prayers during this difficult time,” he said.
Flutie signed with the BC Lions in 1990 and went on to play for the Calgary Stampeders and the Toronto Argonauts. Flutie was named the CFL’s Most Outstanding Player six times and was named Grey Cup MVP three times.
In November 2006, Flutie was named the greatest CFL player of all time in a poll of CFL players conducted by TSN.
