Friends and family remember George Peoples as a giver, even when he needed help.
By DONG-PHUONG NGUYEN and JEFF TESTERMAN
Published November 25, 2003
TAMPA - By all accounts, George Peoples was a legend in high school sports. When his professional football career ended, he returned to Tampa to coach high schoolers itching for a taste of athletic stardom.
On the field, he was a leader, a role model, a motivator.
But off the field, the former Tampa Bay Buccaneer struggled with personal demons that friends said ultimately caught up with him.
Peoples, who was found dead in a Kennedy Boulevard motel room over the weekend, left behind a wife and two children.
"It's a tragic story," said state Rep. Bob Henriquez, who coached high school football with Peoples. "He apparently had some bad angels."
Peoples, 43, went to King High School, where he excelled in football and track and field. In 1999, the St. Petersburg Times named him one of Hillsborough County's 100 best prep players of all time.
He played at Auburn University and was drafted by the Dallas Cowboys. He played for New England for a season before spending parts of 1984 and 1985 with the Bucs.
When his career as a running back ended, he returned to his hometown to help groom a new generation of players.
"He tried to set a good example, at least on the field," Henriquez said. "George had an awful lot to offer, and did offer, to young people and the community."
But his return was marked with personal struggle.
Just last week, Peoples was in court on a variety of charges related to a traffic stop six months earlier. According to police reports, Peoples was pulled over on May 28 by Tampa police for a traffic infraction and gave officers a phony name. Police said Peoples was driving with a suspended license.
In a search of his car, they discovered a crack pipe stuffed between the driver's seat and the console, according to a police report.
Although police said the pipe tested positive for cocaine, prosecutors dropped the narcotics charge. As part of a plea agreement, Peoples pleaded guilty on Nov. 19 to giving a false name to police, driving with a suspended license and possession of drug paraphernalia. He was placed on probation for 12 months and was ordered to pay court costs and complete community service.
Courthouse records also show Peoples had difficulty making ends meet for most of his adult life.
In 1984, he was sued for child support in a paternity case. The support problem dogged him for the next 20 years, according to the case file.
Despite his personal problems, he tried to turn his life around. He went back to Auburn last year for his degree, according to his brother, Nathan Peoples.
Tyrone Keys, director of the Tampa-based All Sports Community Service, said he spoke to Peoples more than a month ago. Peoples had been working at a car dealership in Alabama.
He gave Keys an ominous message.
"You and (Nathan), you look after my son," Keys recalled Peoples saying. "He won't let you down."
Peoples' son Khevin used to join his dad on the sidelines when his dad was coaching high school football. He now plays for the Blake High School football team.
Peoples didn't care about his son following in his footsteps. He just wanted Khevin to be happy, said Nathan Peoples. Peoples' wife, Regina, and daughter, Tia, also live in Tampa.
Henriquez, who had been a friend for a decade, said the last time he saw Peoples was a year ago at the state high school football championships.
Peoples appeared upbeat.
"He looked great . . . healthy, happy," Henriquez said. "He was really getting his life together."
The last moments of Peoples' life were spent at the Harbor Lite Motel at 3301 W Kennedy Blvd. He checked in Saturday afternoon, paying $40 cash for one night, said Jag Jathwa, the motel owner.
"He was okay," Jathwa said. "There was nothing unusual."
About 11 a.m. Sunday, Jathwa knocked on the door to room 10 because Peoples had missed check-out time. There was no answer and the door's dead bolt was locked.
Jathwa called police. Firefighters knocked the door down and found Peoples dead inside. Autopsy results are pending.
"My brother was a great person," Nathan Peoples said. "If there was any way my brother could help you, and if he had ways and means to do it, if any way possible he could get it done, he would break his neck to do it. It doesn't make a difference about his enemies. He loved people in general."
- Times researcher Kitty Bennett and staff writer Ernest Hooper contributed to this report.
