By Thomas Corhern, TTU Sports Information
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – Tennessee Tech Sports Hall of Famer Lonnie Warwick passed away Monday. He was 82.
He was a legendary figure among the Golden Eagle football alumni, earning a spot in one of the first classes in the TTU Sports Hall of Fame in 1978. Warwick spent a year at the University of Tennessee before joining Wilburn Tucker's Golden Eagle squads from 1961 to 1963.
The 1962 and 1963 seasons saw Warwick earn all-Ohio Valley Conference recognition. In the latter campaign, he had set a program record in what was then internally called defensive points – an amalgamation of tackles, assists, intercepted passes, pass breakups, recovered fumbles and other defensive plays. The 1964 Tech media guide listed him as the single-season record holder in defensive points with 275 and tying Lowell Smith with the most defensive points in a single game with 49.
Following the 1963 season, Warwick left Tech and worked on the railroad before he was scooped up by the Minnesota Vikings. He spent 1964 on the taxi squad before making the team as a rookie in 1965. That season, he endeared himself with Vikings fans after returning a blocked punt for a game-winning touchdown in a 38-35 victory over the Los Angeles Rams.
He was a member of the team's famed "Purple People Eaters" defense between 1965 and 1972, appearing in 92 regular-season games with 84 starts, along with six postseason games – including Super Bowl IV, a game that featured 13 future Pro Football Hall of Famers.
Warwick recorded 12 interceptions, including four in the 1969 campaign with the Vikings going 12-2 and leading the National Football League in points against and yards allowed. He also collected seven fumble recoveries.
He later joined the Atlanta Falcons with former Vikings head coach Norm Van Brocklin from 1973 to 1975.
After a stint as a player/coach with the World Football League's San Antonio Wings, Warwick returned to the NFL briefly with the Washington Redskins, helping with game planning and defensive coordination. That helped start a career as a coach as he spent four seasons as the defensive coordinator at Maryville College before becoming the head coach and general manager of the American Football Association's West Virginia Rockets. He was named the AFA's Coach of the Year in 1981 as the Rockets went 15-1 to win the league championship. Warwick also coached with the USFL's Denver Gold and Salem College.
Warwick's legacy at Tech extended generations as his grandsons Jack and Jake followed in his footsteps and became Golden Eagle football players as well – Jake from 2015 to 2018, Jack from 2018 to 2021. The elder Warwick was a fixture in Cookeville during their careers, camping out at Tucker Stadium to watch them take the field.
Warwick was inducted into the West Virginia Sports Hall of Fame in 2017.
He returned to Minnesota in 2019 as the Vikings celebrated its 1969 squad, then, in September 2022, Warwick was selected to sound the Gjallarhorn as part of the franchise's Legends Weekend with a win over the Detroit Lions.
---
In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to support the renovation of the Lonnie Warwick Mount Hope Municipal Stadium. Checks payable to Mount Hope Stadium can be mailed to the City of Mount Hope, PO Box 151 Mt. Hope, WV 25880.
There will be a memorial service at 11:00am on Saturday, November 16, 2024 at the Mt. Hope Baptist Temple. A Celebration of Life will follow at 2:00pm at the Lonnie Warwick Mount Hope Municipal Stadium (weather permitting) 11 High School Dr. Mt. Hope, WV. In the event of inclement weather, the Celebration of Life will take place at the WV National Guard Armory, 409 Wood Mountain Rd. Glen Jean, WV.
