A while back, I came across a blurb and a photo about Mike DeNiro and posted it up on Texags. He was a great defensive player who played in the late 60's that I read about in an old Aggieland.

Anyway, I was looking at my photobucket account and the picture had pulled several hundred hits in the last few days coming from texags. I tried to search for the thread that is linking people to the photo, but haven't had any luck.

Does anyone have a link to the thread?

This is the picture I'm talking about.

Probably our greatest defensive player ever!

It is tough to remember the details, but I think he died in a car wreck (alcohol???), about the same time as a tu player died from cancer. Mike's death got little notice.

I agree, bar none.

Freddie Steinmark was the tu player who died from cancer but he died in '71

Mike drown in a small amount of water after an auto wreck in Louisiana.....every student at Aggieland had to take a swimming test for two semesters afterwards......he died in 1970.....

Mike and Ross Brubaker were on the way back to CS from Ross's home in Louisiana when they left the road. The car went into a bar ditch. No alcohol involved, but Ross probably fell asleep at the wheel. Mike couldn't swim and was afraid of water. He panicked, could not get out of the car, and drowned. It was a very sad day at Aggieland. BTW, when I was in school everyone had to take a swimming test. If you could not swim you automatically went into a swim class.

Also, Mike was from Youngstown, Ohio, and was tough as nails. Very rare in those days for us to have a player from out of state. He was a great one. Stallings named an award after him, but can't recall what it was called. Not sure the team still gives it out. Anyone recall?

They were still requiring the swim test (4 lengths of the pool in Downs Natatorium) in the fall of 73.

He's in the favorite aggie pictures thread. I don't know what page though. I happened to click on one of the pages of the thread on Monday and googled him to see how he died. Didn't find anything until I saw this thread. RIP Mike.

To those who knew Mike, he was a great football player. I played freshman ball with him at A&M. I graduated after one year and left. You now the rest of the story on Mike except for one thing. We all had to take a swim test before enrollment at A&M. If you could not swim you had to take lessons to learn to swim. Mike refused to go into the water for the test and threatened to leave school if he had to go near water. The rules were bent for Mike and Mike alone. This breach cost Mike his life. I was there. I remember this. I had to swim the length of the old olympic pool to pass the test as everyone else did, except for Mike. What a shame...

Mike Deniro was so good that one had to be there to appreciate how good he really was. He was close to "unblockable"! Against tu when they were clearly the best team in SWC, Deniro went through a double team, blocked a tu punt and then recovered the ball in the end zone for a TD.He IMHO was one of the best two or three defensive players I can recall see playing since 1961. Deniro would have been an ALL PRO! He was that good.

I'm glad the olympic pool swim test was not required when I applied.

Mike was my dad's best friend and my older brother Michael Anthony Stegent was named after DeNiro. It's crazy to hear all of these names because Ross is my Godfather.

My dad, to this day, still says the day he got the call that Mike had drowned was one of the worst days of his life. DeNiro was supposed to come to Houston for the weekend to hang out with my mom and dad. Unfortunately, he never made it.

[This message has been edited by Jason Stegent (edited 3/30/2011 12:10p).]

I remember Mike, but I remember more about Billy Hobbs, and they played together in 67-68.

Was Mike better than Billy? Seems like I was always focused on Hobbs because I knew he would be where the ball was or was going.

If he was still alive, he would probably be a coach like others from Youngstown--the Stoops brothers and the Pelini brothers.

[This message has been edited by Jim Benson 63 (edited 3/30/2011 3:40p).]

I never attended Texas A&M but I am from youngstown ohio and more importantly I graduated from Chaney. I was a freshman when Mike died but my older brother played with him. He was an awesome person. I remember in 1967 our baseball coach who was also the track coach for chaney asked Mike if he would come to the batting cages with my team to give us a few pointers. You have to understand that Mike was an icon to the kids grwoing up on the westside of youngstown. He spent about an hour with me giving me some hitting tips showing me the correct way to bunt. He called me little gaud. a name that was given to us over the years by our peers. I still smile when I think of this event because Mike was everyone 's hero. He was just a good guy and really humble. As a side note, his brother Gary played for Alabama and won a couple of national championships in 78 and 79. I wish Texas A & M would find a permanet way to honor his memory. This kid gave his heart and soul to the Aggies. After Mike died a tape was made of some of his games. It was not a highlight film just tapes of the game He was all over the quarterback or the ball carrier just about on every play. Thank you for allowing me to post on your board

Great thread. I was there 1968-70 (I left for a few years to do other things and returned to graduate in 1978) and the death of Mike Deniro was shocking. Didn't know about his fear of water. Mike was indeed a great player. Thanks for posting, OP.

tt

I believe the " Aggie Heart Award " was created in Mike's memory while Coach Stallings was there. I believe that award is still given annually

quote:

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Mike was my dad's best friend and my older brother Michael Anthony Stegent was named after DeNiro. It's crazy to hear all of these names because Ross is my Godfather.

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Jason-
....It is good to hear from you. Your father, Larry Stegent was our hoss, running back, back in the day.
.
Mike was the Aggie Heart Award recipient, but the award was first awarded by Coach Gene Stallings in 1965, and I believe Joe Welborn was the initial recipient.

[This message has been edited by wisdom (edited 12/23/2011 8:53a).]

On a day where we mourn the passing of Joe V this thread is extremely poignant...I remember Mike's passing only too well...he was one heck of a football player...

I am class of '71. I remember Mike Deniro well
although I did not know him personally. He was
just a great football player and would have been all everything had he lived. He also
played baseball at A&M for a while and was just
a good all around athlete. He liked to play pool at Northgate. I played freshman basketball and one day after practice, I was
asked to drive him from Kyle Field over to Northgate to the pool hall. He never said a
word to me while we drove over and I was scared to death I might not get him over to the pool hall on schedule. He did not speak
"Texan"; I was told had never seen a cow
until he came to A&M. These are just some of
my thoughts on the great Mike Deniro.

I played with Hobbs, Ross Brubacher and Mike Deniro in the late 1960's and 1970. Everything good said about Deniro is understatement. But I need to correct a statement by Animal 72. Ross's best friend was from Lafayette and was getting married in or around New Orleans. Ross was best man. Deniro went with Ross to La.for the wedding. It was either after a rehersal diner or bachelor party that the groom and Mike drove from Lafayette to New Orleans. Ross was not in the car. In Metarie, there are large ditches or canals right beside the road. The groom probably went to sleep and drove into one of the ditches. Mike was unable to get out of the car because he panicked when the water came in and he couldn't swim. The groom tried to help Mike out but he couldn't get him out. It was particularly tragic because neither were hurt in the "crash" and the water was not deep nor the ditch that wide. Horrible, horrible week, in particular for Ross. He and some players and coaches flew to the funeral in Youngstown. I'll always remember Mike's Dad behind our bench the next year at the Ohio State game. Very sad memory.

Watched him and know he was the inspiration for the likes of Simonini, Ten Napel, and on and on, i.e. the Wrecking Crew.

And now, in 2011.....Joey V. My thoughts are with his family.

To give some perspective, ttt.

He made the Texags top 100.

Rest in peace.

Mike had gone to a wedding in Louisiana. On the return trip , they lost control of the car and it turned upside down in a bar ditch in about 7-8 feet of water. Everyone got out of the car except Mike , who could not swim and was afraid of the water, and he drowned.

After that A&M initiated the "swim test" for all incoming freshmen. You had to swim x distance to pass in order to get into school . ( sorry dont remember the exact distance , it was some time ago) . I was attending the old A&M summer camp in Junction (working out/training as a walk on) the summer after Mikes passing. The coaches told us they would never loose another Aggie because he didnt know how to swim, so part of the training was to swim across the junction river and back, on the back side of the camp. Dr Cheverette (sp?) headed up the training there. up every day at 6 for stretches/workouts, then class for couple of hours, 6-7 mile runs ( by platoon) to the big cross on the hill and back, then football related workouts till mid/late afternoon in triple digit heat. I lost nearly 20 pounds in the 6 weeks there, hated it at the time, but quite an experience looking back. My father ( class of 42) said it would be a character building experience... looking back, he was correct; once again.

Interesting stuff. Never heard of Mike DeNiro. Glad I know about him now.

Solid post

As good as Mike was he still had a huge upside. We never saw the best of Mike DiNero
though what we saw was special...and he was a damn good baseball player. Gone way
to soon. God Bless you Mike....thanks for the memories.

To have watched him reach his potential would have been a great experience. Really, it's kind of hard to feature that he had room to improve but many who should know say he did, and that had he lived he'd have done so.

Who knows what he'd have accomplished.

Really, he probably deserves a place on the Top 100, even with a sadly abbreviated career.

google vincent deniro, i think mike's uncle. his family was notorious in youngstown and many of his fiends and family died in car bombings. it was rumored that no big ten school recruited him even though he was a great player to avoid associations with his family. look it up. he was an unbelievable player who blocked 2 punts and returned them for td's in the 69 tu game, our only points.

They honor him every year by awarding the Aggie Heart Award in his name to the football player who exemplifies heart, courage, leadership, etc.

Polo