| Date of birth: | January 15, 1941 |
| Place of birth: | Brookhaven, Mississippi |
| Date of death: | November 9, 2009 (aged 68) |
| Place of death: | Vallejo, California |
| Career information | |
|---|---|
| Position(s): | Cornerback |
| College: | Utah State |
| NFL Draft: | 1965 / Round: |
| Organizations | |
| As player: | |
| 1965-1969 | Minnesota Vikings |
| Playing stats at DatabaseFootball.com | |
Earsell Mackbee (January 15, 1941 – November 9, 2009) was a professional American football player.
Mackbee was born in Brookhaven, Mississippi, and graduated from Utah State University, where he starred as a cornerback. He played 5 seasons in the National Football League, all with the Minnesota Vikings. He was a starting cornerback on the Vikings’ famed Purple People Eaters defense and made 15 interceptions in his career.[1] He started in Super Bowl IV, but injured himself when he missed a tackle on the Chiefs' star receiver Otis Taylor.
After retiring from the NFL in 1971, Mackbee became an entrepreneur, opening a chain of restaurants and other business ventures. He also worked as a counselor and advisor for City Inc, a Minneapolis outreach and educational program.[2]
In 2005, Mackbee suffered a stroke and had been in a hospice ever since. On October 16, 2009, his condition took a turn for the worse, and his family rallied to fulfill his last wish of returning him to his roots in Vallejo, California.[3] Ten days after donations allowed his family to charter a plane to fly him back to Vallejo, Mackbee died on November 9, 2009.[4]