How Did Bubba Smith Die?

Bubba Smith (born Charles Aaron Smith) died on Wednesday, August 03, 2011 in Los Angeles. He was famous for being a former NFL lineman and he also had a small acting career and appeared in several Police Academy police academy movies (as character Moses Hightower) as well as Miller Lite commercials. He was 66 years old.

Many of his fans are wondering, how did Bubba Smith die? So far there is no concrete reason released on how he died but police do not think it is suspicious. There were no signs of foul play at his home where he was found dead. His caretaker is the one who found him dead. The police are assuming that he died of natural causes but no one will know for sure what he died from until an autopsy is done and the results for that could take a few weeks.

Bubba Smith was first known for his football career when he went to Michigan State in the 60's where his popularity was the highest. Fans used to chat "Kill Bubba Kill" when he was on the field. It was there that he was named the top overall pick in the 1967 draft. Later he went on to join the Baltimore Colts and stayed with them for five seasons. He joined the Oakland Raiders and later the Houston Oilers and played with those teams for two seasons each. In 1971, he won the Super Bowl with the Colts. He was a defensive lineman with each team. He retired from Football in 1976 to pursue an acting career. He appeared in all of the Police Academy movies except for one. Some of the other things he's been in are Blue Thunder, Blood River, Charlie's Angels, Semi-Tough, Wonder Woman, Eight is Enough, Sabrina the Teenage Witch, The Naked Truth, Fist of Honor, The Wild Pair, Married with Children, etc. Aside from the police academy movies, he was especially known for the Miller Lite commercials where he ripped the bear can top off with his bare hand. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1988 and his number ninety five jersey was retired in 2006.

Bubba Smith was a talented athlete who was larger then life (almost literally, he was 6 feet 7 inches). A former Michigan State teammate Robert Viney released a statement through Michigan State and said "I will shed some tears tonight because I've lost a great friend," Viney said. "He never sought the spotlight. He was a humble man. As I remember him, I recall the chants of "Kill, Bubba, Kill" from the crowd in Spartan Stadium. He will be missed."

Sources:

AOL News

Hollywood Reporter

ESPN