John Wood, a consensus 1972 All-Southeastern Conference player and Defensive MVP of the 1972 LSU football team, died Sunday. He was 56.
A private memorial ceremony is scheduled in Monroe later this month.
Wood was a three-year, defensive lineman letterman for the Tigers from 1970-72. In his three seasons, LSU went 27-8-1, finished those seasons in the top 10 in one or more polls and went to three straight bowl games. He shared team MVP honors with quarterback Bert Jones in 1972, when LSU allowed only 12 touchdowns in a 9-2-1 season.
He came to LSU from Lake Charles. After being drafted in the third round of the NFL draft ? the 70th overall pick ? by the Denver Broncos, Wood made Baton Rouge his home.
Wood is survived by his mother Alma Wood of Lake Charles, a son John Wood III from Prairieville and a daughter Summer Wood-Patterson of Stuggart, Germany, and three grandchildren, John Wood IV, Alexa Marie Wood and Bryce Patterson.