AUBURN, Ala. (EETV) - Former Auburn linebacker Kevin Greene passed away Monday. The Pro Football Hall of Famer and Auburn walk-on was 58.
Greene walked on with the Tigers in 1983 after playing intramural football for three seasons as a member of the Auburn ROTC team. In his first year, Greene played special teams for Auburn's SEC Championship team.
As a senior, Greene was named the 1984 Southeastern Conference defensive player of the year after leading the SEC in sacks with 11. Under the coaching of Pat Dye, Greene also recorded 69 tackles.
In the NFL, Greene was a fifth-round pick to the Los Angels Rams in the 1985 draft. His 15-year career was split between four teams including the Rams until 1992, the Pittsburgh Steelers until 1995, the Carolina Panthers in 1996, the San Francisco 49ers in 1997. From 1998 to 1999, Greene returned to the Panthers.
In 1996, Greene was chosen as the NFC Defensive Player of the Year after recording 14.5 sacks and 51 tackles for the Panthers.
Chosen for the Pro Bowl five times and first team All-Pro three times, Greene was feared by quarterbacks throughout the league. He led the NFL in sacks twice, while leading his team in sacks 11 out of his 15 professional years. Greene recorded 160 career sacks, the third highest in NFL history.
Greene became the second Auburn Tiger to be honored in the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1996. He was also voted to the NFL's 1990s All-Decade Team.
After his professional career, Greene took to coaching in the NFL where he was on staff for the Green Bay Packers during their Super Bowl XLV championship season.
