The football community lost another member on Tuesday when former NFL quarterback and current White Hall head football coach Ryan Mallett passed away at the age of 35. According to multiple sources, the Batesville, Arkansas native reportedly drowned in Florida.
Mallett had been transported from a beach to a nearby hospital in Florida, but he was pronounced deceased at the medical center.
NFL fans may remember Mallett as a third-round pick out of Arkansas in 2011. Bill Belichick’s New England Patriots selected Mallett with the 74th pick, eyeing him as a developmental option behind Tom Brady. Yet, he may have simply been the best player available in the team’s eyes after previously being touted as a potential first-round pick.
Three seasons later, the Patriots would trade Mallett to the Houston Texans, where he’d get a chance to make his first NFL start. Mallett also joined the Baltimore Ravens for parts of three seasons. In all, Mallett made eight starts in his NFL career.
By 2018, Mallett was seeking other opportunities outside the NFL. This would eventually lead him to taking an assistant coaching job at Mountain Home High School in Arkansas in April of 2020. By 2022, Mallett had already found a head coaching job with White Hall High School in his home state of Arkansas.
