The professional football world woke up to devastating news this week as a former NFL player was found dead as the result of a rock climbing incident.
According to the Daily Caller, Gavin Escobar, 31, a former Dallas Cowboys tight end, was found deceased along with a female, 33, at a popular rock climbing spot known as Tahquitz Rock, which is near Idyllwild in Southern California.
The Associated Press noted:
The climbers were identified Thursday as Chelsea Walsh, 33, and Gavin Escobar, 31.
Rescuers were called around 12:30 p.m. Wednesday to Tahquitz Rock near Idyllwild following a distress call, the Cal Fire/Riverside County Fire Department said on Twitter.
A team managed to climb into the steep, remote area and found both climbers dead at the scene, the department said.
Not only was he known for his days spent on the football field, but Mr. Escobar was also a proud Long Beach, California firefighter. His station posted a touching tribute via Twitter.
It is with deep sadness that we announce the off-duty death of Long Beach Firefighter Gavin Escobar. Hired on February 5, 2022, Firefighter Escobar was assigned to Fire Station 3 on B-shift. pic.twitter.com/pOgBFnwH9f
— Long Beach Fire (CA) (@LBFD) September 30, 2022
Escobar had ended his professional football career in 2019, having played primarily for the Cowboys, but also briefly for the Kansas City Chiefs, Baltimore Ravens, Cleveland Browns, and Miami Dolphins.
A GoFundMe fundraiser was established on Friday to help Escobar's wife and children deal with the coming days.
Gavin Escobar was a great football player, but that’s one thing on a long list
Gavin was an amazing father, husband, brother, son, friend, hooper, piano player, skateboarder, surfer…the list goes on
Please donate to help Gavin’s wife and two daughtershttps://t.co/m521bVTOer
— Hewy (@hewynewton) September 30, 2022
Clearly, Escobar was a man admired and respected by many, for many reasons.