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Former Steelers first-round draft choice Greg Hawthorne has died at the age of 69.
Greg Hawthorne, a first-round pick of the Steelers and a Super Bowl champion, has died, his family posted on social media on Thursday.
“On behalf of the Hawthorne family, it is with deep sadness that our brother Gregory Dale Hawthorne passed away last night,” a Facebook post read. “Please keep his mother and his children, his brother and sisters as well as the whole family in your prayers. ”Running back Greg Hawthorne runs with the football against the Chicago Bears.
The running back was not expected to go in the first round of the draft, playing just three games during his senior season. Though he played 15 games in his rookie season when the Steelers won the Super Bowl, Hawthorne’s Pittsburgh career started slowly as he struggled to break into a starting lineup that featured Franco Harris, Rocky Bleier and Sidney Thornton.
His best season with the Steelers, of five, was in 1980 when he started five games due to a Harris injury. Hawthorne rushed for 263 yards on 63 carries and scored four touchdowns. Greg Hawthorne returns a kickoff during an NFL football game circa 1983 at Three Rivers Stadium in Pittsburgh. He later switched to receiver with Pittsburgh but struggled to find playing time in that role.
After his time with the Steelers, Hawthorne spent three years with the Patriots and one with the Colts. He had 34 receptions for 361 yards and a touchdown while in New England. He also reached the Super Bowl in 1986 with the Patriots when they lost to the vaunted Bears. In his NFL final season, with the Colts, Hawthorne made three appearances, recording three catches for 41 yards.
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