Brian Piccolo Louis Brian Piccolo ( October 31 , 1943 – June 16 , 1970 ) was a professional football player for the Chicago Bears for four years . He died from embryonal cell carcinoma , an aggressive form of germ cell testicular cancer , first diagnosed after it had spread to his chest cavity . He was the subject of the 1971 TV movie " Brian ' s Song " , with a remake ( of the same title ) TV movie filmed in 2001 . Piccolo was portrayed in the original film by James Caan and by Sean Maher in the 2001 remake . Early life . Brian Piccolo – the youngest of three sons – was born in Pittsfield , Massachusetts to Joseph and Irene ( 1909 - 2011 ) Piccolo . The family moved south to Fort Lauderdale , Florida when Piccolo was twelve , due to his parents ' concerns for his brother Don ' s health . Piccolo and his brothers were athletes and Brian Piccolo was a star running back on his high school football team , but considered baseball his primary sport . He graduated from the former Central Catholic High School ( now St . Thomas Aquinas High School ) in Fort Lauderdale in 1961 . Piccolo played college football at Wake Forest ; his only other scholarship offer was from Wichita State . He led the nation in rushing and scoring during his senior season in 1964 and was named the ACC Player of the Year , yet went unselected in the 1965 NFL Draft . In 1963 Darryl Hill of the University of Maryland was the first and only African - American football player in the Atlantic Coast Conference . According to Lee Corso , who was an assistant coach at Maryland at that time , Wake Forest had the " worst atmosphere " of any place the Maryland football team played . Piccolo went over to the Maryland bench , walked Hill over to the area in front of the student section , and put his arm around him , silencing the crowd . Following his senior season , Brian Piccolo married his high school sweetheart , Joy Murrath , on December 26 , 1964 . They had three daughters : Lori , Traci , and Kristi Piccolo . NFL career . Because he was not selected in the 1965 NFL Draft , Piccolo tried out for the Chicago Bears as a free agent . He made the team for the 1965 season , but only earned a spot on the taxi squad , better known today as the practice squad , meaning he could practice but not suit up for games . In 1966 , Piccolo was on the main roster but played primarily on special teams . By 1967 , his playing time increased as a back - up to starting tailback Gale Sayers , and in 1969 , he was moved up to starting fullback , with Sayers as the tailback . At the time , the players were segregated by race for hotel room assignments . At the suggestion of the team ' s captain , the policy was changed and each of the players were re - assigned based on position , such that wide receivers would room together , quarterbacks would room together , etc . The running back position was the only one where one player was black ( Sayers ) and one player was white ( Piccolo ) . Death and legacy . In 1969 , the Chicago Bears were in the midst of a 1 - 13 season , which was the worst record in the history of the Bears . Piccolo had finally earned a place in the starting lineup as an undersized fullback . During the ninth game in Atlanta on November 16 , he voluntarily removed himself from the game , something he had never done , which raised great concern among his teammates and coaches . He had extreme difficulty breathing on the field , so when the team returned to Chicago he was promptly sent for a medical examination , and was diagnosed with embryonal cell carcinoma . Soon after Piccolo had surgery at Sloan - Kettering in New York City to remove the tumor , he had another surgery in April 1970 to remove his left lung and pectoral muscle . After being bothered by chest pain , Piccolo was re - admitted to the hospital in early June , and doctors determined the cancer had spread to other organs , most notably his liver . Brian Piccolo died on June 16 , 1970 , at the age of 26 . A month prior to his death , Sayers said : " I love Brian Piccolo , and I ' d like all of you to love him . When you hit your knees to pray tonight ; please ask God to love him too . " Bears running back Gale Sayers uttered these famous words in May 1970 , as he accepted the NFL ' s Most Courageous Player award . Sayers told the crowd they had selected the wrong person for the honor , and would accept it only on Piccolo ' s behalf . " Brian ' s Song " . The film " Brian ' s Song " , loosely based on Gale Sayers ' autobiography , tells the story of the friendship between Brian Piccolo and Gale Sayers and their time during football with the Chicago Bears up until Brian Piccolo ' s death . It first aired on ABC in 1971 , starring James Caan as Brian Piccolo and Billy Dee Williams as Gale Sayers , and was such a success on television that it was later shown in theaters . A remake was filmed in 2001 for ABC ' s " The Wonderful World of Disney " starring Mekhi Phifer and Sean Maher . Biography . Piccolo ' s biography , " Brian Piccolo : A Short Season " , was written by Jeanne Morris ( the wife of Chicago Bear teammate Johnny Morris ) and featured passages written by Piccolo himself for a planned autobiography .