Tennessee fans remember Jesse Mahelona as the big, energetic player with the upbeat attitude.
Mahelona, 26, played two years as a Volunteer before a brief pro career that included stops with the Tennessee Titans, Miami Dolphins and the Atlanta Falcons.
Here are some photos of Mahelona from our files from his days in Knoxville.
According to his agent, he was getting interest from Canadian teams when he died Saturday after his car hit a concrete barrier and some construction equipment in a 1 a.m. accident.
The Honolulu Advertiser reported that he was found by police dead at the scene.
Big Island police said Mahelona's Honda sedan had its roof torn off and Mahelona, who was not wearing a seat belt, was ejected from the car. Police said alcohol may have been a factor in the crash, the Hawaii newspaper reported.
On his blog, sports writer Mike Griffith quotes former Tennessee defensive coordinator John Chavis as saying:
"That personality, Jesse could bring sunshine on a rainy day. He was always upbeat, always smiling, and his attitude rubbed off on people.
"He loved life and what he was doing. I never saw him without that smile. It's a tragedy and a big loss. We had Jesse for two years, and he was a wonderful young man."
A junior college transfer to Tennessee. he played in 24 games for the Vols with 77 tackles and seven sacks. He made the Sporting News All-America Team and the All-SEC second team in 2004.
His sister died less than three months ago. He leaves a daughter, Karter, and his wife, Brandee Kukita-Mahelona, who is pregnant with their second child.
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Comments » 23
Pullingguard writes:
Pictures 2-8 will not come up... only picture 1 and 9 does.... Would be nice if all could be reviewed...
Orangeblood13 writes:
may God Bless your soul Jesse
lail#204076 (staff) writes:
Thanks, that has been fixed. Enjoy the memories!
give_him_6 writes:
R.I.P. big man. You were so great to watch and played with such emotion. You were called home far to soon.
CRFVols writes:
Thanks for the memories Jesse, you were a pleasure to watch. R.I.P
God Bless
crimsonviper writes:
Hope for peace for the family.Sorry Vol fans..RIP
crimsonviper writes:
you are an incredible peckerhead for saying that.
WTF is wrong with you??
nevermind, don't answer that just STFU..IDIOT
allvolinatlanta writes:
Couldn't have said it better myself. Thank you!
davethevol writes:
He used to come into a place that I worked back in the summer when he joined the Vols. He was always one of the nicest, friendliest Vols I ever had the chance to speak with. He was a good guy.
Mr_Brownstone writes:
r.i.p.
Down_The_Field writes:
i'll always remember him as "hawaiian punch."
rest in peace young man.
Down_The_Field writes:
viper...this is the same punk that made fun of bruce pearl's beat cancer night at one of the basketball games where they took donations and handed out t-shirts. this guy's a pathetic punk.
back to the subject. i hope there is a moment of silence for "hawaiian punch" at the ucla game.
crimsonviper writes:
I understand now.KNS needs to pull the plug on the fool.
I hope they have a moment of silence.He will be a Vol legend regardless....RIP
leedsvol2007 writes:
Our prayers to the family.
Jesse will be long remembered as a great Vol.
licknpromise777#651578 writes:
Big Heart;Leaving an even bigger hole; Heartbreaking Loss
Rockygrass writes:
WTF man...
DenverVol writes:
Sad day for the Vol family and of course the Mahelona family especially. I'll never forget him coming up huge in the Ol' Miss game in '04. Pretty sure we wouldn't have won that game if it weren't for Jesse. R.I.P.
VOL1SG writes:
In the service, when we lose one of our own, we have lost a brother. He was truly a brother to the Orange Nation. GOD SPEED BROTHER.
GO VOLS!!
ncvol17 writes:
His life was way too short but his highlites will live on in UT history forever.. A VOL for eternity..always remembered by the VOL nation.
johnlg00#206211 writes:
This is truly a tragedy for all involved. Jesse was a much-loved Vol and by all accounts a good man in his family and community.
But, on a more sober note, WHAT does it take, HOW MANY of these tragedies do we have to read about, before people realize that you MUST wear that seat-belt!?!?! It's not just the LAW, it is a LIFE-SAVER! Most traffic deaths you read about, one or more of the victims was not wearing a seat-belt. There is NO excuse, people, unless you just WANT to be the subject of a story like this. If you don't have enough respect for your own life, consider how your family and friends would feel about losing you to something so trivial as not BOTHERING to wear your seat-belt! Setting aside the alcohol issue for a moment, the seat-belt may well have saved Jesse's life even if he would have had the accident anyway.
Sorry to preach on such an occasion, but this is something I feel STRONGLY about. I'm pretty sure Jesse's family would echo my every word.
tractoronthepole writes:
When I think of Jesse, I think of his Junior year against Alabama. He took over that game and without him we lose that game. I remember thinking he may be the next comming of Reggie White, although he did not live up to that comparison I will always thank him for that game. RIP.
go_vols_go writes:
Sad news.... I always enjoyed watching him on the field. RIP
rerun writes:
We as a family remember Jesse at VOL football camps that our oldest son attended when he was a young teen. We purchased Jesse's old practice jersey as a birthday gift for him while we were there and Jesse autographed it for him. He was a very polite, friendly guy.Thanks for the memories. Our sympathy goes out to his family.
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