Brandon Vaughn Burlsworth (September 20, 1976 – April 28, 1999) was an offensive lineman for the Arkansas Razorbacks football

Arkansas Razorbacks football

The Arkansas Razorbacks football program is a college football team that represents the University of Arkansas. The team is a member of the Southeastern Conference's Western Division, which is in Division I's Football Bowl Subdivision of the National Collegiate Athletic Association...

 team from 1996-1998. He joined the team as a walk-on and eventually became an All-American.

He was well known for his thick black glasses and his resemblance to comedian Drew Carey

Drew Carey

Drew Allison Carey is an American actor, singer, comedian, photographer, sports executive, and game show host. After serving in the U.S. Marine Corps and making a name for himself in stand-up comedy, Carey eventually gained popularity starring on his own sitcom, The Drew Carey Show, and serving as...

.

Burlsworth graduated from the University of Arkansas

University of Arkansas

The University of Arkansas is a public, co-educational, land-grant, space-grant, research university. It is classified by the Carnegie Foundation as a research university with very high research activity. It is the flagship campus of the University of Arkansas System and is located in...

 with bachelors and masters degrees. Shortly after graduating, he was selected in the third round of the 1999 NFL Draft

1999 NFL Draft

The 1999 NFL Draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 17-18, 1999...

 by the Indianapolis Colts

Indianapolis Colts

The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. They are currently members of the South Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League ....

. Eleven days after being drafted, he was killed in a car accident near Alpena, Arkansas

Alpena, Arkansas

Alpena is a town in Boone and Carroll counties in the U.S. state of Arkansas. The population was 371 at the 2000 census.The Boone County portion of Alpena is part of the Harrison Micropolitan Statistical Area.-History:...

 on his way back to his hometown of Harrison

Harrison, Arkansas

Harrison is a city in Boone County, Arkansas, United States. It is the county seat. According to 2007 Census Bureau estimates, the population of the city was 13,108. Boone County was organized in 1869, during reconstruction after the civil war. Harrison was platted and made the county seat. It is...

 one night after a workout in Fayetteville

Fayetteville, Arkansas

Fayetteville is the county seat of Washington County, and the third largest city in Arkansas. The city is centrally located within the county and is home to the University of Arkansas. Fayetteville is also deep in the Boston Mountains, a subset of The Ozarks...

.

After his death, family and friends established The Brandon Burlsworth Foundation in honor of his work ethic and Christian values. Today, the Burlsworth Foundation provides underprivileged youth a chance to attend Razorback and Colts football games.

In 2010, the Burlsworth Trophy

Burlsworth Trophy

The Burlsworth Trophy is an award given annually by the Rotary Club of Springdale, Arkansas to the most outstanding college football player who began his career as a walk-on.-Eponym:...

 was created and named in his honor. The award will be given yearly to the most outstanding Division I FBS college football

College football

College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...

player who began their career as a walk-on.

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