Notre Dame Player From Encino Dies; Collapsed at Disco

Notre Dame football player Bob Satterfield collapsed at a local nightclub and died early today in the emergency room of a Niles, Mich., hospital, school officials said.

Satterfield, of Encino, Calif., was a 1985 graduate of Notre Dame High School in Sherman Oaks, where he was student body president and lettered in football, basketball and track.

At the University of Notre Dame, Satterfield saw limited playing time in the 1988 season. He had returned to South Bend late Wednesday after he and his teammates met with President Reagan in Washington for a ceremony recognizing the Irish as national champions.

A statement released by Notre Dame Sports Information Director John Heisler said the cause of death has not been determined. The statement said Satterfield died at 3 a.m. at Pawating Hospital.

Niles Township Police Chief John Street said it appears neither drugs nor foul play were involved.

“He collapsed at the bar and had an apparent seizure,” Street said, adding that Satterfield had not been drinking alcohol.

Street said doctors completed a preliminary autopsy this morning. A blood screen showed no drug use, the chief said, but added further tests were planned.

“There was no hint at all that he was having physical or medical problems,” said Heisler, who accompanied the team to Washington.

Satterfield was sitting with defensive end Darrell (Flash) Gordon and tailback Mark Green when he collapsed at O’Tays Nite Club in Niles, about five miles north of the campus.

‘He Was Feeling Fine’

“He was feeling fine,” said Gordon. “He had been dancing some earlier, but we were just sitting there at the table, just talking and joking, and all of a sudden he collapsed to the ground. It looked like he was having a seizure.

“When he collapsed, I looked around. I thought maybe someone had hit him,” said Gordon. “There wasn’t much we could do.”

Niles Township authorities said questions about Satterfield’s death were being referred to Notre Dame.