LOGAN, Utah – Former Utah State football player Brian Suite passed away on Tuesday, Sept. 1, in his hometown of Honolulu, following a courageous battle with soft tissue sarcoma, which is a very rare cancer. He was just 28 years old.
“I have no words to describe how I’m feeling,” said USU head football coach Gary Andersen. “Brian’s family, friends, coaches and teammates have lost a great one far too soon. He was an integral member of this team and of Aggie Nation, and he impacted the lives of all he came in contact with, both off and on the field. Brian embodied everything that we want an Aggie to be, and his example of positivity in the face of adversity will live on. Our hearts are with his mom, Wendy, and with the Suite family at this time of tremendous loss.”
Suite was a three-year starter at safety for Utah State from 2012-14 and earned honorable mention all-Mountain West honors as both a junior and senior. He was also named to the SI.com and CBS Sports.com All-Bowl Teams following his junior season, as he tied his season high with 11 tackles, to go along with a fumble recovery and an interception, in the Aggies’ 21-14 victory over No. 24 Northern Illinois in the San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl.
Suite also earned honorable mention National Defensive Back of the Week honors from College Football Performance Awards following the inaugural Mountain West Championship game as he had nine tackles and a career-high two interceptions at No. 24 Fresno State in 2013.
As a three-year starter, Suite helped Utah State to the 2012 Western Athletic Conference Championship and a school-record three-straight bowl wins as the Aggies defeated Toledo, 41-15, in the 2012 Famous Idaho Potato Bowl, followed by the win against No. 24 Northern Illinois in the 2013 San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl, and a 21-6 win against UTEP in the 2014 Gildan New Mexico Bowl.
For his career, Suite started 40 of the 41 career games he played in. Overall, he posted 226 tackles, including a career-high 13 stops at Wisconsin during his junior campaign. Suite also had eight interceptions and 21 pass breakups in his career. In his final collegiate game against UTEP in the 2014 Gildan New Mexico Bowl, Suite posted a season-high 10 tackles.
Suite, who was a three-time academic all-conference honoree, graduated from Utah State with a degree in business administration. Following his collegiate career, he was invited to the Detroit Lions rookie camp.