Tiaina Baul "Junior" Seau Jr. (; ; January 19, 1969 – May 2, 2012) was an American professional football linebacker who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 20 seasons. A member of the San Diego Chargers for most of his career, he is regarded as one of the greatest linebackers of all time.
Seau played college football for the USC Trojans, earning All-American honors and winning Pac-10 Defensive Player of the Year in 1989. He was selected fifth overall in the 1990 NFL draft by the Chargers, where he spent his first 13 seasons. During his San Diego tenure, he received 12 consecutive Pro Bowl and six first-team All-Pro selections. Seau also led the league in solo tackles in 1994 en route to the franchise's first Super Bowl appearance in Super Bowl XXIX. After being traded from the Chargers, Seau was a member of the Miami Dolphins for three seasons. He played his last four seasons with the New England Patriots, where he was a member of the 2007 team that won all 16 regular season games and appeared in Super Bowl XLII.
Three years after his retirement, Seau committed suicide in 2012. Seau was later diagnosed with chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), a brain disease found in other deceased NFL players, drawing further scrutiny towards the health of football athletes. He was posthumously inducted to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2015.
Early life Seau was born on January 19, 1969, in San Diego, California, the fifth child of Tiaina Seau Sr. and Luisa Mauga Seau of Aunu'u, American Samoa. Tiaina Sr.'s grandfather was a village chief in Pago Pago. Tiaina Sr. worked at a rubber factory and was a school custodian, and Luisa worked at the commissary of Camp Pendleton in Southern California and a laundromat. After Seau was born, the family moved back to American Samoa for several years before returning to San Diego; Seau did not learn to speak English until he was seven years old. At home, Seau and his three brothers had to sleep in the family's one-car garage.
Seau attended Oceanside High School in Oceanside, where he lettered in football, basketball, and track and field. As a football player, Seau was a starter at linebacker and tight end, and as a senior, he was named the Avocado League offensive MVP and led the 18-member Oceanside Pirates team to the San Diego 2A championship. Parade selected Seau to its high school All-American team.
In basketball, as a senior, he was named the California Interscholastic Federation San Diego Section Player of the Year. He helped his team win the 1987 Lt. James Mitchell Tournament and make third place in the Mt. Carmel Invitational. In track and field, he was the Avocado League champion in the shot put. Seau was also named to California's all-academic team with a 3.6 grade-point average.
College career After graduating from high school, Seau attended the University of Southern California (USC). He had to sit out from football in his freshman season due to his 690 SAT score on the college entrance exam, which was 10 points short of USC's minimum score for freshman eligibility.
Seau told Sports Illustrated: "I was labeled a dumb jock. I went from being a four-sport star to an ordinary student at USC. I found out who my true friends were. Nobody stuck up for me—not our relatives, best friends or neighbors. There's a lot of jealousy among Samoans, not wanting others to get ahead in life, and my parents got an earful at church: 'We told you he was never going to make it.' " This prompted him to apologize to his coaches, teachers, and principal at Oceanside High.
Seau lettered in his final two seasons with the USC Trojans, 1988 and 1989, posting 19 sacks in 1989 en route to a unanimous first-team All-American selection.
Professional career San Diego Chargers
After three years as a Trojan, Seau entered the NFL draft after his junior season and was chosen in the first round of the 1990 NFL draft by Bobby Beathard's San Diego Chargers as the fifth overall draft pick. Seau quickly became one of the most popular players on the Chargers, receiving the nickname "Tasmanian Devil", after the wild antics of the cartoon character. He became the face of the Chargers franchise and a San Diego sports icon.
Seau started 15 of the 16 games he played in during his rookie season, and was named an alternate to the 1991 Pro Bowl after recording 85 tackles. In 1991, he picked up 129 tackles and seven sacks and was named to the 1992 Pro Bowl, the first of 12 consecutive Pro Bowls for Seau. In 1992, he was awarded the George Halas Trophy by the Newspaper Enterprise Association as the NFL's top defensive player, NFL Defensive Player of the Year by Football Digest, AFC Defensive Player of the Year by United Press International, and the NFL Players Association (NFLPA) AFC Linebacker of the Year. He also won the NFLPA award in 1993 and 1994.
He started no fewer than 13 games for the Chargers over each of the ensuing 11 seasons, registering a career-high 155 tackles in 1994, when he led his team to a championship appearance in Super Bowl XXIX. In one of the greatest games in his career, he recorded 16 tackles in the 1994 AFC Championship Game while playing with a pinched nerve in his neck in a 17–13 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers. Despite San Diego's 1–15 record in 2000, the NFL Alumni Association named him their Linebacker of the Year. In 2002, his final year with the Chargers, he logged a then-career low 83 tackles and missed his final Pro Bowl due to an ankle injury.
Miami Dolphins On April 16, 2003, Seau was traded to the Miami Dolphins for a conditional draft choice. He started 15 games that season for the 10-6 Dolphins and was one of their standout defensive players. However, in 2004, a torn pectoral muscle limited Seau to eight games, 68 tackles, and one sack. He started five of the first seven games he played in with the Dolphins in 2005, but was placed on injured reserve on November 24 with an achilles tendon injury. On March 6, 2006, Seau was released by the Dolphins.
New England Patriots Seau announced his retirement at an emotional press conference on August 14, 2006. He called it his "graduation" because he was not going to stop working. He contended that he was merely moving on to the next phase of his life.
Seau returned to football just four days later, signing with the New England Patriots. He started 10 of the first 11 games for the Patriots, recording 69 tackles before breaking his right arm while making a tackle in a game against the Chicago Bears. He was placed on injured reserve on November 27.
On May 21, 2007, Seau re-signed with the Patriots for the 2007 season. In September 2007, Seau was named one of the Patriots' seven captains. He was a prominent contributor to the Patriots undefeated regular season that year. He started four of the 16 games he played in for the Patriots in 2007, and then started the Patriots' two playoff games before Super Bowl XLII against the New York Giants. New England's undefeated streak ended with a Super Bowl loss to the Giants.
After the Patriots had a number of injuries late in the 2008 season, they re-signed Seau. He started two of four games he played. On December 22, 2008, a fan was arrested for trespassing and assault and battery for tackling Seau as he stood on the New England sideline during a home game against the Arizona Cardinals. Seau stated that he did not feel threatened by the fan; he thought that the fan was happy and excited, and just got carried away.
On October 7, 2009, NFL Network reported that the Patriots had an "agreement in principle" with Seau for a fourth one-year deal; Seau took physicals and worked out with the team. He officially signed on October 13. He was active for 7 games for the Patriots in 2009, recording 14 tackles as a reserve linebacker.
Retirement Seau announced his intention to retire permanently on the television program Inside the NFL on January 13, 2010.
NFL career statistics Year Team GP Tackles Fumbles Interceptions Cmb Solo Ast Sck FF FR Yds Int Yds Avg Lng TD PD 1990 SD 16 85 61 24 1.0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 1 1991 SD 16 129 111 18 7.0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 2 1992 SD 15 102 79 23 4.5 1 1 0 2 51 25.5 29 0 10 1993 SD 16 129 110 19 0.0 1 1 0 2 58 29.0 42 0 11 1994 SD 16 154 123 31 5.5 1 3 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 3 1995 SD 16 128 111 17 2.0 1 3 0 2 5 2.5 3 1 8 1996 SD 15 139 111 28 7.0 1 3 0 2 18 9.0 10 0 7 1997 SD 15 97 84 13 7.0 1 2 0 2 33 16.5 26 0 6 1998 SD 16 114 91 23 3.5 1 2 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 7 1999 SD 14 98 74 24 3.5 1 1 0 1 16 16.0 16 0 9 2000 SD 16 122 102 20 3.5 1 0 0 2 2 1.0 2 0 11 2001 SD 16 94 83 11 1.0 2 0 0 1 2 2.0 2 0 6 2002 SD 13 83 59 24 1.5 1 0 0 1 25 25.0 25 0 7 2003 MIA 15 96 66 30 3.0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 3 2004 MIA 8 57 31 26 1.0 0 1 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 1 2005 MIA 7 36 18 18 1.0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 1 2006 NE 11 69 39 30 1.0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 1 2007 NE 16 74 58 16 3.5 0 0 0 3 28 9.3 23 0 4 2008 NE 4 22 15 7 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 2009 NE 7 14 9 5 0.0 0 1 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 Career2002 San Diego Chargers Media Guide. Pg. 128.2008 New England Patriots Media Guide. Pg. 247. 268 1,846 1,436 410 56.5 12 18 0 18 238 13.2 42 1 98
Beyond football His restaurant at Westfield Mission Valley in Mission Valley, California—Seau's The Restaurant, which opened in 1996—was his most successful business venture. Seau also had a clothing line, Say Ow Gear. The restaurant was closed on May 16, 2012, just two weeks after his death; the trustees of his estate explained that "Without Seau's charismatic leadership, it was felt that the future profitability of the restaurant could be in question."
Sports Jobs with Junior Seau premiered on December 2, 2009, on Versus. The show followed Seau as he did the jobs that make sports work. Ten episodes aired through January 27, 2010.
Seau was actively involved with community work through Samoan "sister city" projects within San Diego County.
Junior Seau Foundation
In 1992, Seau created the Junior Seau Foundation with the mission to educate and empower young people through the support of child abuse prevention, drug and alcohol awareness, recreational opportunities, anti-juvenile delinquency efforts and complementary educational programs.
The 20th Anniversary Junior Seau Celebrity Golf Classic was held March 10–12, 2012, at the La Costa Resort and Spa.
The Foundation gave out an annual award to the individual who exemplifies the mission statement of the Junior Seau Foundation.
2000 — Legend of the Year — Sid Brooks 2001 — Legend of the Year — Lance Alworth 2002 — Legend of the Year — Sid Gillman 2003 — Legend of the Year — Don Coryell 2004 — Legend of the Year — Marcus Allen 2005 — Legend of the Year — Deacon Jones 2006 — Legend of the Year — Bobby Ross 2007 — Legend of the Year — Warren Moon 2008 — Legend of the Year — Marshall Faulk 2009 — Legend of the Year — Charlie Joiner 2010 — Legend of the Year — John Lynch 2011 — Legend of the Year — Bill Walton
Personal life In 1989, Seau's older son, Tyler, was born to Seau's high school sweetheart, Melissa Waldrop. Seau broke up with Waldrop when Tyler was 13 months old. He married Gina Deboer in 1991. The couple had three children together, a daughter and two sons, before divorcing in 2002. Seau's son Jake attended Duke University where he played lacrosse. In 2019, Jake signed with the Dallas Rattlers of Major League Lacrosse.
Seau sustained minor injuries in October 2010 when his SUV plunged down a 100-foot cliff in Carlsbad, California, only hours after he was arrested for domestic violence following an incident reported to the police by his girlfriend at their home in nearby Oceanside. Seau stated that he fell asleep at the wheel, and was never charged in the domestic incident.
Seau's nephew, Ian Seau, was also a football player. Another nephew, Micah Seau, played football at San Diego State. His cousin was Pulu Poumele.
Death