HAMPTON, Va. – The Hampton University football program and the Department of Athletics mourn the loss of former Pirate Corey Swinson, who died on Tuesday at the age of 43.

"We were a better team because of Corey, and I thank his family for sharing him with us," fomer Pirates head coach Joe Taylor said. "He was a big part of those championships we won when I first got to Hampton. He was in the middle of that defense that allowed us to turn the program around. He was a great player and an even better man, and I am truly sad about his passing."

Swinson was a First Team All-CIAA selection for the Pirates at defensive tackle, and in 1995 he was selected in the seventh round of the NFL Draft by the Miami Dolphins. He ultimately spent that season playing for the St. Louis Rams.

"He was one of HU's finest," head coach Donovan Rose said of Swinson, who was on the 1992, 1993, and 1994 CIAA championship squads. "Cory was a phenomenal person, as well as an athlete.

"I remember one day when we had some problems with the direction of the team. Cory stepped in and said, 'Don't worry, coach, we got this.' The very next day, the problem was solved. He had a way of getting things done.

A lifelong resident of Bay Shore, N.Y., Swinson returned home after his short NFL career and served as the district's security director from 2002-12. He was also a youth football coach in the community, coaching in the Bay Shore Little Conference Football League.

After his job as security director, Swinson had served as director of school safety and security for Copiague Public Schools. He had a 13-year-old son, Messiah, who currently attends Bay Shore Middle School.

At Bay Shore High School, Swinson was a basketball standout who briefly played football. He came to Hampton in 1992, and he majored in social work while with the Pirates. According to his biography in the 1994 Pirates media guide, Swinson's goals were to "work as closely as possible with black youth."