Former Stoughton Football Coach, Player Reflect on Jovan Belcher Murder-Suicide

Former Stoughton High football standout Matt King (SHS '02) and former Black Knight head coach Jack Cosgrove are quoted in Sports Illustrated's Dec. 10 edition, reflecting on the death of Kansas City Chiefs linebacker Jovan Belcher.

Belcher, 25, murdered Kasandra Perkins, his girlfriend and mother of his three-month-old daughter, Zoey, then killed himself at the Cheifs' practice facility last Saturday, Dec. 1.

The fourth-year player went to see Chiefs' general manager Scott Pioli and head coach Romeo Crennel, thanking them for giving him a chance to play before taking his own live by shooting himself in the head.

Belcher went to the University of Maine where he graduated with a degree in child development and family relations. While at Maine he played for Cosgrove, who has been head coach at the University of Maine for 20 years, and was a former teammate of King's, now an assistant strength and conditioning coach at Maine.

King talked to Sports Illustrated about how Belcher wasn't recruited heavily out of West Babylon High School on Long Island, NY and ended up in Maine, which Cosgrove refers to the "Land of Misfit Toys."

"It's the guys who were too small, or too slow, or not developed enough; guys with something to prove," said King in the article.

Cosgrove told Sports Illustrated that, "everyone has a dark side. I know for all of Jovan's successes, he didn't have successful relationships with women."

King played at UMaine from 2002-2006 and was the in camps of the New York Jets and Pittsburgh Steelers. He also played Arena Football and in the Canadian Football League. Before going back to Maine, King worked for two years at Velocity Sports Performance and Premier Athlete Training in Foxborough.

Cosgrove was the head football coach at Stoughton High from 1981-1984, and was a history teacher at SHS. He left to coach at Boston College in 1985 and joined the Maine staff in 1987, becoming head coach in 1993. He also had a standout athletic career at Sharon High School and at the University of Maine.

Click here to read the full article in Sports Illustrated.