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Walker leaves behind legacy of hard work, passion

By Ivan Maisel
ESPN.com

Friday, June 30, 2006

We throw around the phrase "sudden death" in football so much that it loses its impact. When someone in the game dies as suddenly as Northwestern coach Randy Walker did Thursday night at the age of 52, the force of those words lands like a two-by-four to the chest. Oklahoma offensive line coach James Patton left Walker's staff a few months ago. Patton set out in the car Friday morning with his wife Nichole and their three children on their family vacation. When his phone rang, it was all he cou ...

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