Jake Ehlinger Family Releases Texas Longhorns LB Cause of Death: ‘Accidental Overdose’

The family of late Longhorns linebacker Jake Ehlinger has released a statement detailing the believed cause of death

AUSTIN - The University of Texas football program received devastating news this past may when Longhorns linebacker Jake Ehlinger, younger brother of former Texas quarterback Sam Ehlinger, was found dead.

The department received a call in regard to the incident at 12:18 p.m. on May 6. Shortly after is when they found the younger Ehlinger on the 1200 block of West 22nd Street.

The police department did not list a cause of death upon discovering Ehlinger but did say his death was not considered suspicious.

However, on Thursday, the Ehlinger family released a statement detailing the incident, and the believed cause of death.

The statement: 

“Today we are sad to share that we have learned that Jake was a victim of an accidental overdose of what was believed to be Xanax laced with toxic drugs including deadly Fentanyl,” the Ehlinger family statement said. “The spread of counterfeit pills is an ongoing and significant issue throughout our country, particularly in schools, colleges, and universities.

“As our family continues to process Jake’s death, we felt it was important to share these details with the hope that Jake will not have died in vain,” the statement continued. “We pray that sharing Jake’s story will help shed light on this problem and prevent other families from also tragically losing a loved one.”

Like his older brother, Sam, Jake attended Austin Westlake High School in Austin, Texas.

Jake was enrolled at the McCombs School of Business at Texas, one of the most prestigious business schools in the country. 

Ehlinger, who did not play during his two seasons in the program, chose to walk on to the Longhorns program in 2019, despite receiving an offer for a scholarship from the University of Pennsylvania. He was a two-time member of the Big 12 Commissioner’s Honor Roll in the fall of 2019 and the spring of 2020.