linebacker

Denver Broncos linebacker Alex Singleton played in their recent victory over Las Vegas Raiders despite being diagnosed with testicular cancer a few days earlier.

The 31-year-old had surgery last Friday to remove a cancerous tumor that was in its early stages – a day after he made nine tackles in the Broncos’ 10-7 win over the Raiders at Mile High Stadium.

In a post on his Instagram account,, external Singleton said his health concerns started over two weeks ago following a drug test that showed elevated levels of the hormone hcG in his system.

A visit to a urologist, who performed an ultrasound last week, revealed the presence of testicular cancer.

Singleton said he is on the road to recovery after an operation and predicted he will return to the field in “the coming weeks” as he awaits additional test results but has “a great prognosis”.

“I wrestled with sharing such personal information publicly,” Singleton said.

“But the fact is, if it helps one person decide to pay closer attention to their body, then it is well worth it.

“Early detection and regular screenings save lives and can save loved ones from a lot of grief.”

Laguna Beach’s football season came to an end on Friday night after the Breakers lost to Sherman Oaks Notre Dame 44-28 in a Division 3 playoff opener. But if you saw the performances of three freshmen starters, you’d know how promising the future looks for Laguna Beach.

Luke Bogdan, 6-foot-4, 260 pounds, and Winston Darrow, 6-foot-4 and 240 pounds, are 14 years old. Both start on the offensive line. Bogdan also played on the defensive line. Then there’s Charlie Christian, a running back and linebacker who is 15 and never wants to go down without a fight.

To have players so young holding their own on an offensive line in Division 3 was remarkable. Quarterback Jack Hurst was sacked once. Then there’s Christian, who caught five passes for 85 yards while also taking on Notre Dame’s huge offensive line on defense at his linebacker position.

When college recruiters see these freshmen on film and imagine how big and strong they might become in the coming years, they’ll be impressed.

This is a daily look at the positive happenings in high school sports. To submit any news, please email [email protected].

COLLIERVILLE, Tenn. — Woodrow Lowe, a three-time All-American linebacker at Alabama and an 11-year starter for the NFL’s San Diego Chargers, has died. He was 71.

Lowe died at his home in Collierville, Tenn., on Thursday, according to the National Football Foundation.

Lowe was a 2009 NFF Hall of Fame inductee. He starred at Alabama (1972-75) and was the second player in program history to make the first-team All-America list three times. He helped the Crimson Tide make the Sugar Bowl in 1973, losing to eventual national champion Notre Dame, and was a consensus All-America selection the following year.

“Woodrow Lowe was one of the finest linebackers ever to play the game, and we are deeply saddened to learn of his passing,” NFF Chairman Archie Manning said. “A three-time All-American and one of the most decorated linebackers in college football history, he defined excellence at one of the top programs in the country.

“After his playing days, he dedicated himself to shaping young lives as a coach and mentor, carrying forward the lessons of excellence and dedication that defined his own career. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family and the entire Alabama football community.”

Born June 9, 1954, in Columbus, Ga., Lowe got his football start at Phenix City Central High in Alabama. He stayed in state for college and set a single-season record at Alabama with 134 tackles in 1973. The Tide went 43-5 during his four seasons in Tuscaloosa, and his 315 career tackles still rank fourth in school history.

A fifth-round draft pick by the Chargers in 1976, Lowe played in 164 of 165 possible games during his NFL career and tallied 21 interceptions, including four returned for touchdowns.

He coached at the high school, college and professional levels before retiring in Tennessee.

Lowe also was inducted into the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame, the Sugar Bowl Hall of Fame and the Senior Bowl Hall of Fame.

Former USC and NFL linebacker Keith Browner died Tuesday morning in San Leandro, the Alameda County Sheriff’s Office Coroner’s Bureau confirmed Wednesday. He was 63.

Keith Browner Jr. told TMZ that he talked to his father Monday night when the elder Browning was having stomach problems, vomiting and feeling tired. Browner Jr. said his father told him he would go to the hospital the next morning.

Browner was getting ready to go to the hospital Tuesday morning, according to TMZ, “when he curled over the side of a chair and collapsed to the floor next to his girlfriend.” TMZ also reported that “it appears” Browner suffered a heart attack and that his death was “unexpected and sudden.”

Alameda County authorities provided no cause of death Wednesday.

Born in Warren, Ohio, Browner was the fifth of six brothers, all of whom played college football and four of whom went on to play in the NFL. A second-round pick (30th overall) for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 1984, Browner also played for the San Francisco 49ers, Los Angeles Raiders and San Diego Chargers during a five-year NFL career.

Oldest brother Ross Browner spent 10 years in the NFL, playing for the Cincinnati Bengals and Green Bay Packers. Jimmie Browner Jr. played two years with the Bengals. Joey Browner was a six-time Pro Bowl player who spent nine seasons with the Minnesota Vikings and one with the Buccaneers.

Browner Jr. followed in his father’s footsteps as a college and pro football player. A standout defensive end at Dorsey High, Browner Jr. played three seasons at California and one season with the Houston Texans.

A nephew, Ross Browner’s son Max Starks, played nine years for the Pittsburgh Steelers and one for the St. Louis Rams.

Browner — who was 14 when his father, Jimmie, died of cancer at age 49 — said his mother Julia was the driving force behind her sons’ passion for the sport.

“She’s the one who always urged us to play,” he told the Dayton Daily News in 2023, “and sometimes she’d be right out there with us in the yard when we were having pick-up games.”

A three-sport standout at Warren Harding High, Browner spent four seasons at USC (1980-83), overlapping with brother Joey for the first three. He was named a captain for his final season and finished his college career with six interceptions in 34 games played.

Browner made the NFL’s all-rookie team in 1984. After three years with the Buccaneers, he split the 1987 season between the 49ers and Raiders before spending his final NFL season with the Chargers.

He finished his NFL career with 10.5 sacks, four interceptions (including one returned 55 yards for the Chargers against the Seattle Seahawks in 1988) and five fumble recoveries, then played two seasons in the Canadian Football League and six in the Arena Football League.

Browner is survived by his son and four daughters.