James Victor Cain, Jr. (July 22, 1951 – July 22, 1979) was an American football tight end for the St. Louis Cardinals of the National Football League. He played high school football at

Booker T. Washington Booker Taliaferro Washington (April 5, 1856November 14, 1915) was an American educator, author, orator, and adviser to several presidents of the United States. Between 1890 and 1915, Washington was the dominant leader in the African-American c ...

in Houston, Texas and

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

at Colorado before being drafted by the Cardinals seventh overall in the

1974 NFL Draft The 1974 NFL draft took place at the Americana Hotel in New York City, New York, on January 29–30, 1974. Each of the 26 NFL teams were granted 17 selections for a total of 442 picks. Many experts consider the 1974 Pittsburgh Steelers to have h ...

Professional career

Cain was selected seventh overall in the

by the St. Louis Cardinals. Despite the Cardinals already having a starting tight end in Jackie Smith, general manager George Boone believed Cain was too good a talent to pass up and decided to draft him anyway to play as Smith's backup. In his first two seasons, Cain played in a total of 28 games with ten starts, totaling 286 yards and two touchdowns, and was also named the Cardinals' rookie of the year in 1974. In

1976 Events January * January 3 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force. * January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea. * January 11 – The 1976 Phila ...

, Cain became a full-time starting tight end for the Cardinals, starting all 14 games and catching for 400 yards and five touchdowns. He started every game of the 1977 season as well, catching for 328 yards and two touchdowns. In 1978, Jackie Smith joined the Dallas Cowboys, leaving Cain the top tight end on the Cardinals' roster. However, Cain then suffered an Achilles tendon injury in training camp and missed the entirety of the 1978 season. A devout

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

, Cain used his time that season to read the Bible, and prayed that after recovering from the injury, he would go on to become an All-Pro tight end. As he had hoped, Cain did make a full recovery from his Achilles injury, though he never played another down of NFL football.

Death and legacy

On July 22, 1979, at about 8:30 p.m., Cain suddenly collapsed during a no-contact training camp practice at

Lindenwood College Lindenwood University is a private university in St. Charles, Missouri. Founded in 1827 by George Champlin Sibley and Mary Easton Sibley as The Lindenwood School for Girls, it is the second-oldest higher-education institution west of the Missis ...

St. Charles, Missouri Saint Charles (commonly abbreviated St. Charles) is a city in, and the county seat of, St. Charles County, Missouri, United States. The population was 65,794 at the 2010 census, making St. Charles the ninth-largest city in Missouri. Situated on t ...

. He was revived by

CPR Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) is an emergency procedure consisting of chest compressions often combined with artificial ventilation in an effort to manually preserve intact brain function until further measures are taken to restore sponta ...

and taken to nearby St. Joseph's Hospital, where he died less than two hours later. His death was found to be due to an extremely rare

congenital A birth defect, also known as a congenital disorder, is an abnormal condition that is present at birth regardless of its cause. Birth defects may result in disabilities that may be physical, intellectual, or developmental. The disabilities can ...

heart problem, undetectable except by autopsy, which was exacerbated by strenuous exercise. In honor of Cain, the St. Louis Cardinals football team wore black armbands during the 1979 season. Cain's number 88 is retired by the Cardinals.

Career statistics

References

1951 births 1979 deaths American football tight ends Colorado Buffaloes football players St. Louis Cardinals (football) players Players of American football from Houston African-American players of American football Sports deaths in Missouri 20th-century African-American sportspeople National Football League players with retired numbers {{Tightend-1950s-stub