You may have seen the note at the bottom of the article on the O-line on Darius Patton being dead. Patton signed with Pitt in 2011. Patton was a speedy, undersized receiver expected to have a significant role down the line in FraudGraham’s offense. While he did see some action as a freshman, his most notable incident was collapsing in training camp — for reasons never disclosed. He left the team this past spring for –again — undisclosed reasons. The reasonable assumption being that he decided that he wouldn’t fit in the offense Chryst was running. Yet he did not end up at another school.

Sadly, it appears that it was a suicide.

The death was confirmed a suicide by Southwest Regional Police Chief Riley Smoot, who said police were called to the residence at 7:13 a.m. The official time of death was 8:06 a.m. Mercer County Coroner J. Bradley McGonigle ruled the cause of death asphyxiation by hanging. Patton was a 2011 graduate of Poland High School where he played football and basketball, and ran track for two years. Considered the Mahoning Valley’s top football prospect for the 2011 class, Patton earned a scholarship to the University of Pittsburgh.

In his mother’s house, which had to be unbelievably tragic if she was the one to find him.

The reasons for his suicide are unknown. Obviously things have been a mess for him if he did not even transfer to a MAC school or YSU.

His father, who was a running back under Jim Tressel at YSU, is awaiting sentencing after pleading guilty to conspiracy to distribute a variety of drugs. That wouldn’t help matters.