Former USC and San Diego Chargers safety Kevin Ellison died Thursday at the age of 31.
According to records from the Los Angeles Coroner’s office, Ellison died on a freeway. An autopsy has been scheduled.
His brother Chris Ellison told the Los Angeles Times that Kevin Ellison had been walking along the 5 Freeway in the San Fernando Valley and that he had been dealing with mental health issues in recent years.
“He was disoriented and didn’t know where he was at,” Chris Ellison told the newspaper. “I’m sure he was trying to come home and find his family. We love him so much.”
Kevin Ellison played for the Trojans from 2005 to 2008. He was an All-Pac-10 first-team honoree in 2007, when he posted 57 tackles, including eight for loss, and two interceptions.
USC acknowledged Ellison’s death in a tweet Saturday.
#FightOnForever, Kevin Ellison.
The former USC captain and 3-time Rose Bowl winner died this week. He was 31. pic.twitter.com/fDGatdQuMH
— USC Trojans (@USC_Athletics) October 6, 2018
Following his college career, Ellison was selected by the Chargers in the sixth round of the 2009 draft. He played in 13 games in 2009, his only NFL season.
In 2012, Ellison was arrested on federal arson charges after he set his bed on fire at the apartment complex where he was living in Liberty Lake, Washington, while playing in the Arena Football League. He reportedly said that God drove him to start the fire. The case was later dismissed when Ellison paid restitution.