It was a stripping of identity for me, said Zach about the retirement on the 2019 podcast. One year after the death of his son, Doug Hoffpauir heard from the brain doctors at Boston University. I just want to feel normal., I walked through his darkest days right by his side, said Doug. All he ever wanted to do was make people proud, and he did, Hillary Hoffpauir said. Originally published by The Associated Press on May 16, 2020. Here's everything we know, Richardson sets QB mark for vertical, broad jump, QB Young 5-10 1/8, 204 pounds at NFL combine, Sources: Patriots tell QB Hoyer he's being cut, Horns' Robinson: Versatility worthy of early pick, Jones: Not fixated on Cowboys' drought, just '23, Sources: Raiders plan franchise tag for Jacobs, WR Addison to Steelers' Pickett: 'Come get me', Wolverines' Turner wows with 4.26 40 at combine, Everything you need to know about Geno Smith's contract negotiations. Advertisement. His new role at Northern Colorado included recruiting Arizona. Three Zach Hoffpauir accomplished a great deal, but what he did was not who he was. He made 137 more in high school and was in on hundreds of others playing running back and wide receiver. The world lost a legendary friend and family member, said Cara Burkholder, longtime friend. Cognitive deterioration is the hallmark of CTE, and you rarely see it in 20- and 30-year-olds.. But on May 14, while living with his father in Phoenix during the pandemic, Hoffpauir took a Percocet to help him sleep and never woke up. He made us all proud all the time. Family and friends can send flowers and condolences in memory of the loved one. 17 UCLA, My AP WBB ballot: Stanford-UCLA starts Cardinals huge week. Support local journalism: Subscribe to azcentral.com today. He challenged me, said Shaw. I just dont have the words to express the loss. zachhoff10. "He had quite a number of what we call lesions in the brain," McKee says in the documentary. He was a walking example of how to care for people, a rare soul. Hoffpauir hit .295 with 11 home runs and 58 RBIs at Stanford and was a Pac-12 honorable mention pick in 2015. Centennial remembers football standout Zach Hoffpauir, a life taken too soon. He hit .258 with three home runs and seven RBIs in 62 at-batsbetween rookie and Single-A ball. The night before his death, his mother said he went to bed after taking Percocet, an oxycodone-acetaminophen pain killer that Hoffpaiur acquired from a friend, just to get his first full night of sleep in weeks. Zach Hoffpauir, who died at 26 and was perhaps the greatest football player to come out of Centennial, will have his No. He played primarily on special teams in football and struggled mightily in baseball. He hit .455 his senior year in high school in 2012 with five home runs and 22 RBIs. His heart ached to care for them. The news broke last Thursday via an NBC affiliate in Phoenix. Surrounded by her beloved family, Joyce Ann Hoffpauir, 78, passed away Friday, February 17, 2023. He was the definition of a natural athlete. Cavness, expressed the same feeling in his eulogy. New UNC head football coach Ed McCaffrey hired Zach in February to coach safeties. He was a natural at just about any sport he played.. Are you or someone you know struggling with lingering concussion symptoms or possible CTE? He enjoyed making new friends and always made a point to keep in contact with them through the years. Medical examiners will perform an autopsy on his body, and the family donated his brain to Boston University for chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) research. She went on to play volleyball at Lee University in Tennessee. Get Morning Report and other email newsletters. He was a walking example of how to care for people, a rare soul.. We, as his family, believed that he could do whatever he wanted in life, said Doug. I have nothing else to give.. He was a young, intelligent coach with limitless potential, wrote Ed McCaffery in a Facebook post after Zachs death. He was born to Shannon Hoffpauir, Doug Hoffpauir, According to AZCentral, Hoffpauir was staying with his dad in Arizona during the COVID-19 coronavirus crisis. Christian McCaffrey was his best friend. He worked hard, boosted morale and was incredibly kind, said Casey Sawyer, marketing manager for the Portland, Oregon, suburb-located Hillsboro Hops. Zach Hoffpauir (above in 2014), who played a combined seven seasons for the Cardinal on both the football field and baseball diamond, passed away yesterday at just 26 years old. Joyec Ann Hoffpauir Obituary. The night of May 14, 2020, Zach Hoffpauir and Shaw spoke on the phone for several hours. Visitation will be observed on Wednesday, January 6, 2016 from 11:00 am until the time of services, at First Presbyterian Church, 1130 Johnston Street in Lafayette. Hoffpauir's parents, Doug and Shannon, were recognized He was a young, intelligent coach with limitless potential. The father of Zach Hoffpauir, the former Stanford football player who died last week at the age of 26, said the family has donated Hoffpauir's brain to concussion research. If someone needed a listening ear, advice or a shoulder to cry on, he was there and it wasnt a burden. Zach Hoffpauir (R) had 99 tackles in his time at Stanford. The disease carries three classic features the CTE triad according to Dr. Robert Cantu of the Concussion Legacy Foundation. He was a true friend and a great brother to anyone he knew. Doug Hoffpauir said the opportunity provided a new spark in Zachs life and thanked McCaffrey for taking a chance on his son. Rare two-sport star Zach Hoffpauir dies at 26. He was 26. His mood changed. He was 26. Winds S at 5 to 10 mph.. Clear to partly cloudy. Zach showed me the way when I got to college. (Courtesy of Shannon Hoffpauir), Zach Hoffpauir, left, poses for a photo with his cousin, Morgan Williams, at the family's 2019 Christmas Celebration. He would always come back to Centennial to help out the Coyotes. All rights reserved. We remember things through stories, and we forget things when we take down the things that mean so much to us, we cant tell those stories anymore. He was like a brother to our boys and recently found his calling as our safeties coach at Northern Colorado. Christian McCaffrey saved my life, Zach said in the podcast. . Brad Cesmat, founder and CEO of Sports360AZ.com, said that he first approached Shannon and Doug about doing a documentary on their son in mid-May. More than 800 guests attended Bal Masque XLI, which carried out the theme . The university . Hoffpauirs freshman slump was a blip in an otherwise decorated career in Palo Alto. *** Pac-12 Hotline is not endorsed or sponsored by the Pac-12 Conference, and the views expressed herein do not necessarily reflect the views of the Conference. We were celebrating his accomplishments not knowing that it caused a lot of pressure for him to perform.. Christian McCaffrey, a running back for the Carolina Panthers, paid tribute . The Moving can be an exciting experience. He had trouble sleeping as his mind raced at night. The rookie coach made an early impact on his players. They will let us know when they plan to have a service.. Zach acknowledged that he felt the weight of those who were rooting for him, those that dreamed so highly for him, and could not bear the thought of letting them down. The Sentinel staff takes a closer look at a new team daily, counting backward from No. Former Stanford, Cal MBB coach Mike Montgomery says schools are not keeping up with college changes But he knew something was wrong.. Zach was the type of person who you could just feel the charisma coming off of him, said Justin Sanchez, a teammate of Zachs on the Centennial football team. He has roots in Colorado and Arizona and joined the Bay Area News Group in March 2019. We always talked about living simply when we got older: Hunting, fishing, riding bulls, RVing across the country with @beaukitson (One day we'll do that). Zachs cousin, J.D. He had a shorter fuse and he snapped at friends and family more quickly. The attempt to take his own life came after several life-changing events, including his parents divorce, a breakup and his grandmothers cancer diagnosis. You can see the history of people like Zach, going slowly downhill. View all 23 comments. He will be remembered for his love of God, family, and friends. Zach went 6-12 with three home runs in the series, including an infamous post-homer stare down with a Cal pitcher who had been taunting Stanford. Zach Hoffpauir, a two-sport standout at Stanford who earned All-Pac 12 honours as a safety in football and played two seasons in the Arizona Diamondbacks' minor league system, has died at age 26. On top of the depression and anxiety, he was diagnosed with Lyme Disease in 2019, which weakened his immune system. Former Stanford football player Zach Hoffpauir was posthumously diagnosed with CTE at the age of 26, a physician who researches the disease said on Tuesday . So will his legacy at Centennial. He was the uniter in his family and in his locker rooms. Hoffpauir was a multi-sport athlete at Centennial High School and excelled at a variety of sports, including football and basketball. Football was still relatively new to Zach, so Taylor worried the hit would scare Zach away from the sport. But Zach was just more susceptible it was just the way his body was.. Stanford safety Zach Hoffpauir (10) had 99 tackles in his Stanford career. Zachs funeral, appropriately physically distant of course, is planned for Saturday, May 30. At Stanford, his three-year totals were 11 homers, 58 RBIs and a career .295 batting average. 31, now painted in the team's red and white above the 31-yard line, that will forever represent everything they believed their son, Zach, valued. When Zach took that step up from high school athletics to college athletics, Zach began to feel as if he was losing his passion for the game, his father said. Its startling to see. Living with suspected CTE can be difficult, but CTE is not a death sentence and it is important to maintain hope. I didnt coach him as a freshman, but I most certainly knew about him, cause he was the talk (of the town), Centennial football coach Richard Taylor said. All Access Digital offer for just 99 cents! Find an Obituary. They cheered for her the entire match. Theres no way to specify when the disease started. Zach also started coaching back at Centennial High. Zach Hoffpauir, a two-sport standout at Stanford who earned All-Pac 12 honours as a safety in football and played two seasons in the Arizona Diamondbacks minor league system, has died at age 26. He commented at the time on Hoffpauir's character and how he felt he would some day become a great coach. "For a report to come out, 'Just another athlete who died of a drug overdose,' that doesn't tell the story," Shannon says in the 30-minute documentary, "Zach Hoffpauir: The Real Story," that will first air on Sports360AZ.com at 5 p.m. Monday. The father said at the time that the Hoffpauir family had donated Zachs brain to concussion research. (Courtesy of the Hoffpauir family), Zach Hoffpauir wears sunglasses and a lei at his graduation from Stanford. It allowed him to focus on good things in his life, even if those things were having a family or air conditioning. Hoffpauir played safety and McCaffrey was a running back. And I said, Thats that Hoffpauir kid that plays football?. The totality of the damage brought Zachs football career to an end. Hoffpauir, who was from Glendale, Arizona, was close friends with McCaffreys son, Christian, whos now an All-Pro running back for the Carolina Panthers, when they both attended Stanford. 31 jersey retired this month. Although he had a plethora of offers from Division I colleges for baseball or football, Zach wanted to play both. Prior to high school, Zach played one year of eight-on-eight tackle football. You could just feel the charisma coming off of him, Justin Sanchez said. I would tell him that hes the love of my life and he was enough, just him, Shannon Hoffpauir said. The thing I will always remember about him, outside of his great abilities in football and baseball, was he always made everybody around him better, Taylor said. Every time Centennial players step on the field, they will walk by the No. 3 Cardinal past No. He certainly isnt mad at Stanford quite the opposite, in fact. To suggest human-interest story ideas and other news, reach Obert at richard.obert@arizonarepublic.comor 602-316-8827. Zach was known for encouraging friends to keep pursuing their faith and shooting the breeze with family friends. 2023 Cronkite News. (Photo by Mary Grace Grabill/Cronkite News). Zach could sit with the lowest of the low and knew how to show up for people. But I would fake it.". Im done. Zach Hoffpauir, a former football and baseball player at Stanford, died in May of an accidental drug overdose, according to a reportciting county medical examiner records in his native Arizona. Were going to let them do the research.. Doug Hoffpauir did not provide a cause of death. It didnt matter where they came from, how much money they made, what they looked like or what their life experiences were. A medical examiner's database says that Hoffpauir, who was only 26 years old, died on May 14. But Im sure, you know, Zachs looking down on us and know(s) that hes been honored.. This narrowed his choice to two colleges: Arizona State and Stanford. McCaffrey shared similar sentiments, noting Zachs unique passion for leading the players and honesty about his own experiences. 2B Jarrett Hoffpauir and P . Zach Hoffpauir was a multi-sport athlete at Centennial High School in Peoria, Arizona before becoming an all-conference defensive back and outfielder for Stanford University. After graduating from Stanford, Hoffpauirs physical and mental health declined. HIGH SCHOOL. Feb 22, 2023. With Zach preparing for his first season at NCU, he spoke with Shaw about the craft. "It was riddled with CTE lesions.". The medical examiners report cited fentanyl toxicity as Hoffpauirs cause of death, according to the KPNX report, noting that it was ruled an accident. Dont mess with his friends, dont mess with his family, said Lynn. He taught me how to not give a fuck about what people think about me, and to do it my way. Interment will . My dopamine levels were zero. I'd talk to him for three hours. We support patients and families through the CLF HelpLine, providing personalized help to those struggling with the outcomes of brain injury. Family. Search by Name. RELATED STORY The Chelan County Natural Resource Department 35: Stanford. On stage at Christs Church of the Valley after Zachs death, Tyler Thorne urged those in attendance to live as Zach did to be completely present for the needs of others. Following Zachs death, Doug was contacted about donating Zachs brain to the VA-BU-CLF Brain Bank for CTE research. Doug remembers his son saying to him that, there is something wrong with my head. After the attempt on his life, Zach slowly found his footing with a combination of medication, therapy, and self-reflection. This beautiful, talented, incredibly intelligent young man dying at 26 with the ravages of this disease in his brain.. It didn . The doctors said he was just vulnerable, Doug Hoffpauir said. 6 Stanford over Oregon to reach Pac-12 semis Local Sports Things To Do Business eNewspaper Politics USA TODAY Obituaries . Former Arizona State football coach Todd Graham, who was heartbroken on 2011 National Signing Daywhen Zach announced he'd be going to Stanford and not ASU, also is in the documentary, along with Stanford football coach David Shaw and Hoffpauir's best friend from Stanford, Carolina Panthers running back Christian McCaffrey. But he never did it from a place of superiority. At the Centennial event, Doug refused to let the pain of his familys loss and the communitys loss bring down this night of celebration. Zach treated his cousins like siblings and friends like family. Shannon doesn't want her son's death to go in vain as just another sad statistic. The family will also hold a Celebration of Life at a later date. I am devastated by the loss of Zach Hoffpauir, a friend to me and my family since his playing days with my son Christian at Stanford, Bears new head football coach Ed McCaffrey wrote on Instagram on Friday. Doug Hoffpauir said in the days after his sons death that he was certain Zach did not die by suicide. It didn't kill former Stanford football player Zach Hoffpauir, who died . He was good friend's with McCaffrey's son, Christian, a running back for the Carolina Panthers. At the time of his death, he was staying with his father in Arizona during the coronavirus pandemic. My AP WBB ballot: Stanford-UCLA starts Cardinals huge week Zach also set an important precedent by talking about his own struggles with mental health and encouraging others to seek help in their darkest hours. Follow him on Twitter @azc_obert. All the concussions he got from playing shortened his career. The results provided closure, said Doug. He had so much to look forward to.". And so, that was kinda hard, because these are the things that Zach loved, this is where he wanted to be.. msn back to msn home sports Skip To Navigation Today at No. #mc_embed_signup{background:#fff; clear:left; font:14px Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif; } Copyright the Concussion Legacy Foundation. Add a Memory. He also starred as an outfielder on Stanfords baseball team and was drafted by the Diamondbacks in 2015. Zach had been staying with his father in the Valley during the coronavirus pandemic shutdown. Glendale native Zach Hoffpauir, who played baseball and football at Stanford University after a brilliant athletic career at Peoria's Centennial High School, died in his sleep May 15. "To a point it was exhausting talking to him. Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images. He was our he was kinda like our heartbeat honestly, he was the personality of the team.. Zach Hoffpauir, a former Peoria Centennial and Stanford football safety, died last Thursday at the age of 26. Faust's team accumulated 15 hours of footage to put into the 30-minute documentary that not only includes interviews from his parents Shannon and Doug, but insight from Ann McKee, a neurologist and director of Boston University's CTE Center on the results of the study on Hoffpauir's brain. His natural athletic talent led him to success at Centennial High School in Arizona, Stanford and a brief stint with a Minor League Baseball team. Following tragedies, Central High School finds comfort in its football community. Hoffpauir was known as a hard hitter and suffered at least five documented concussions before medically retiring from football in 2016.
