Former University of Hawaii quarterback Colt Brennan has passed away at 37, according to Brennan’s father, Terry.
As reported by ESPN, Brennan passed away at a Newport Beach, California, hospital early Tuesday morning after paramedics were called to a hotel room where Brennan was unconscious after ingesting a drug laced with fentanyl, according to his father.
Brennan was in the fifth month of a six-month treatment program and had been doing well according to Terry Brennan.
“He was doing so well, the spark was back in his eyes, and he was healthy and doing great, and it happened,” Terry Brennan said according to The Star Advertiser.
“Obviously, someone gave him a pain pill of some sort, but it was Fentanyl, according to what we’re understanding. We’re still a long way from figuring it out. That’s where we are right now.”
Brennan gained fame at the University of Hawaii where he led the Rainbow Warriors to a 12-0 regular season and a trip to the Sugar Bowl in 2007. Brennan set the single-season record for touchdown passes with 58 in 2006, and was a 2007 Heisman Trophy finalist.
Hawaii’s football department put out a statement after learning of Brennan’s passing:
It’s hard to put into words the impact that Colt Brennan had on Rainbow Warrior fans and the people of Hawai’i. He was a phenomenal player and provided us some of the greatest sports memories we’ll ever have. But he was more than that. For all that he accomplished on the football field and the adulation he received for it, he always remained among the people. He never turned down an autograph, he never turned down a picture with someone. He inspired everyone, from our keiki to our kupuna. He had a Warrior mentality on the field but true aloha spirit off of it. Today is an extremely tough day. Our thoughts and prayers are with the Brennan ‘ohana and we mourn together with all those across Hawai’i and Rainbow Warrior nation who were touched by Colt.
Brennan was taken in the sixth round of the 2008 NFL Draft by Washington but never played in the NFL due to injuries.
We are saddened to hear about the passing of former Washington QB Colt Brennan. pic.twitter.com/XIXs3LtqiD
— Washington Football Team (@WashingtonNFL) May 11, 2021
In 2010, Brennan was involved in a car accident that left him with a traumatic brain injury. Terry Brennan said his son was never the same after the accident.
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“It seemed to have an effect on him to where he just found himself going from one bad spot to another bad spot. I don’t know how else to say it,” Brennan said. “You make decisions and sometimes they’re the right decision, and sometimes they’re the wrong decisions.”
Joe Morgan is the Sports Reporter for The Daily Wire. Most recently, Morgan covered the Clippers, Lakers and the NBA for Sporting News. Send your sports questions to [email protected].
The views expressed in this piece are the author’s own and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.