Kwamie Lassiter named to 2021 NJCAA Football Hall of Fame Class

Former Butler standout, the late Kwamie Lassiter, to be inducted into the National Junior College Athletic Association Football Hall of Fame.

Born in Hampton, VA, Kwamie Lassiter was an American football safety who played two years at Butler (1989-90) before transferring to the University of Kansas (1992-94). With the Grizzlies, Lassiter was a two-year starter where his team went 18-6 and was named champions of the RC Cola Bowl and the East Bowl. In 1990, he collected KJCCC First Team All-Conference and 1990 NJCAA and JC Gridwire All-American honors. With the Jayhawks, Lassiter was a two-year starter and ended his career with 7 total interceptions and 1994 NCAA Second Team All-Big 8. 

In 1995, Lassiter was drafted by the Arizona Cardinals and became a starter during the 1998 season, when he led the team with eight interceptions. In the Cardinals' final regular-season game that year, Lassiter helped Arizona secure a three-point win over the Chargers to pick up a spot in the playoffs for the first time in 15 seasons. Following a decorative career with the Cardinals from 1995-2002, Lassiter played for the Chargers (2003) and ultimately the St. Louis Rams (2004). Lassiter was a 2002 Pro-Bowl alternate and finished his career with 413 tackles, 25 interceptions with 2 of those returned for touchdowns.

Lassiter established the Lassiter T.A.C.K.L.E. (Teaching All Children to Kickoff Leadership in Education) Foundation in 1999 to provide books for college students, school, and physical education supplies for Title I students. In 2012, he established the Kwamie Lassiter Foundation to raise awareness of Sickle Cell Anemia and childhood cancer. This annual fundraiser is a charity sponsored bowling event and has allowed his organization to make countless contributions to different charities.

Kwamie passed away of a heart attack on January 6, 2019 after working out.

Kwamie Lassiter was one of the NFL's good guys. He was a great teammate and was very active in the community. His sudden death at age 49 shook that community. Lassiter died of a heart attack after working out in January of 2019.

Former Arizona Cardinals head coach Dave McGinniss was hit very hard by the news of Lassiter's death. "In 31 years of coaching, I've coached a lot of great human beings, a lot of Hall of Fame players," McGinnis said. "Kwamie was a special dude. He really was.

"It broke my heart. We lost a special human being. There was a great vibe and life about him. He was great in the locker room, even when things weren't going well."

Lassiter's son, Kwamie Lassiter II, is a wide receiver at the University of Kansas while his nephew Darius Lassiter just finished his sophomore season playing receiver at Butler Community College earning All-KJCCC and All-American honors.