Steve White, who played for Tennessee Vols and in NFL, dies at 48

Steve White, who played football for the University of Tennessee and later spent seven seasons in the NFL as a defensive lineman, died Tuesday. He was 48.

White played for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and New York Jets from 1996-2002. He posted on Twitter in April that he had been battling chronic lymphocytic leukemia for eight years and would soon be checking into the Moffitt Cancer Center for a bone marrow transplant.

Friends, fans, colleagues and former teammates took to Twitter to pay tribute to White, who later worked as a writer for SB Nation beginning in 2013.

White played for the Vols from 1992-95.

White, a sixth-round pick of the Philadelphia Eagles in 1996, played in 94 games in the NFL, registering 119 career tackles and 11.5 sacks. In a 1999 NFC Divisional playoff win over Washington, he collected seven tackles, two sacks and forced one fumble. His NFL career came to an end in 2002.

White also worked for one season as an assistant coach under Jim Leavitt at the University of South Florida.

This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Steve White, former NFL defensive end, dies at 48