Body Identified as Brother of George Rogers

A body found in the woods on Mother’s Day (May 8) in Duluth has been positively identified by the Gwinnett County Medical Examiner’s Office as the brother of beloved local football legend and Heisman Trophy winner George Rogers, according to an article in the Gwinnett Daily Post.

Timothy Rogers, 53, disappeared in March. He was last seen walking home from a relative’s home. A landscaper, he had long battled drug and alcohol addiction and was supposed to be rededicating his life to his church the weekend he disappeared, the Gwinnett Daily Post article stated. A resident of the area found a skull in neighborhood known as “The Hills" on Mother’s Day, and investigators later discovered more skeletal remains.

Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Carol Terry said the remains were identified as Timothy Rogers based on information in his medical records. Since he had a history of drug use, specimens were sent to the GBI (Georgia Bureau of Investigation) Lab for testing. A cause of death has not yet been determined, but foul play is not suspected, according to the newspaper article. Terry is expected to finalize a death certificate after she receives the lab report.

Family members originally told the Gwinnett Daily Post that they assumed Timothy Rogers was in rehab when he disappeared and was not allowed to call home. They informed Rogers of the identification as he arrived in Duluth Wednesday (June 1) from Columbia, S.C., for the second annual George Rogers Classic Golf Tournament. 

George Rogers played football for Duluth High School and for the University of South Carolina where he won the the Heisman Trophy in 1980. The No. 1 NFL draft pick, he played for the New Orleans Saints and later the Washington Redskins winning a Super Bowl title with the Redskins. He now works in the USC Gamecocks athletic department and makes frequent guest appearances for the school, talking to recruits and playing in fund-raising golf tournaments. In May, he was inducted into the Gwinnett Sports Hall of Fame.