Former Spartan Football Player Dwayne O'Steen Dies at Age 46

San Jose, Calif. ----- Dwayne O’Steen, a member of the 1976 and 1977 San Jose State University football teams, died September 15 in his Fairfield, Calif., home of an apparent heart attack according to family friends.

O’Steen, 46-years-old, was a defensive back who originally enrolled at the University of Calfiornia in 1973. The product of Manual Arts High School in Los Angeles lettered on the 1973 and 1974 Golden Bear teams before transferring to San Jose State in 1975. O’Steen was a starter for San Jose State at strong safety in 1976 when the Spartans won the Pacific Coast Athletic Association championship and a free safety his senior season.

O’Steen began his professional football career after signing a free agent contract with the Los Angeles Rams in 1978. He played the 1978 and 1979 seasons with the Rams before moving to the Oakland Raiders for the 1980 and 1981 seasons. His seven-year National Football League career also included stints with the Baltimore Colts in 1982, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 1983 and the Green Bay Packers in 1983 and 1984. He played in Super Bowls XIV for the Rams and XV for the victorious Raiders.

After retiring from football, he became a salesman who specialized in selling equipment and replacement devices to cardiologists.

His survivors include his wife, Christine; sons, Dwayne, Jr., 16, and Jonathan, 13; a daughter, Brittany, 14; and mother, Maxine O’Steen of Los Angeles.

A public viewing and funeral service are scheduled for Friday, September 21 at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, 2700 Camrose Avenue, Fairfield, California. The public viewing begins at 10:00 a.m. and the funeral service starts at noon.