Ex-Gamecock receiver found dead Monday
Tampa Police found the 25-year-old in his car outside of Middleton High School, where Murdock was a football and track star, around 8:30 a.m. He was transported to Tampa General Hospital and pronounced dead.
Murdock, who was the Tampa Tribune's Male Athlete of the Year and the 10th-rated wide receiver in the country according to Rivals.com in 2005, was a member of Steve Spurrier's first recruiting class at South Carolina. He redshirted his first year in Columbia and played in just four games in his freshman season at USC in 2006, registering one reception.
During the 2006 season, Murdock was arrested for shoplifting $424.50 worth of clothing at a Florida department store and was suspended. Instead of returning to Columbia, Murdock transferred to Pearl River Community College in Mississippi, where he earned a scholarship offer from Marshall University.
However, Murdock was unable to earn his two-year degree and was ineligible to accept the scholarship. He then moved to Division II Fort Hays State in Kansas for two years, where his impact was immediately felt. The Tigers averaged 16 points per game in the year before Murdock's arrival. The Tiger offense erupted in 2009, averaging 33 points per game in Murdock's first year at Fort Hays State. Murdock had 60 catches for 1,290 yards and 12 touchdowns in his senior season.
Murdock was not selected in the 2011 NFL draft, but the Tennessee Titans signed him as a free agent. Murdock missed the entire 2011 campaign after injuring his Achilles tendon on the second day of training camp. He was put on Tennessee's injured reserve list for the season. He did not report to Titans' training camp last Friday, citing personal reasons.
Titans general manager Ruston Webster said the organization did not believe anything out of the ordinary was going on with Murdock.
"We were able to make contact with [O.J.] and he assured us everything was O.K. and he would be in here on Sunday," Webster said. "He didn't make it on Sunday."
Tennessee head coach Mike Munchak echoed those sentiments.
"I think everyone was shocked by it," Munchak said. "We weren't aware that there were any issues going on."
Murdock was a member of the same recruiting class as Kenny McKinley, USC's all-time career leader in receptions and receiving yards and a former member of the Denver Broncos. McKinley was found dead in September 2010 from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Both McKinley and Murdock had been placed on the injured reserve list the season before they committed suicide.