Born November 10. 1961 to Christine and I.V. Toran, Stacey Jay Toran was a native of Indianapolis, Indiana. He attended Indianapolis Public School #43 and a 1980 graduate from Broad Ripple High School as an All-American wide receiver and defensive back. He was also captain of his varsity football and basketball teams during his senior year. Toran was a member of the 1980 Broad Ripple “Rockets” State Champion Basketball Team, Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame and the Indianapolis Star’s City Athlete of the year. Toran later went on to become a finance major and an outstanding cornerback in football at the University of Notre Dame. He was defensive co-captain as a senior and named to All-American Freshman and Sophomore teams by Football News.
He was in on 169 tackles during his college days with high games of 14 against Pittsburgh and 10 against Michigan State. He also played in the Liberty Bowl as well as the Hula Bowl and Japan All-Star games. In 1984 Toran began his football career with the Los Angeles Raiders as their sixth round draft choice. He started for the Raiders for four years. Over the seasons, his size, strength, range and speed rated him one of “the best of the best” as a strong safety in the National Football League.
Not only was Toran a well-known sports figure, he was also a great humanitarian. During summers he traveled across the country speaking to youth organizations delivering positive messages. The 6-foot-3-inch, 200 pound athlete attended Progressive Missionary Baptist Church. Teammates said he regularly attended the team chapel sessions before each game. His teammates also described him as a strong leader and a very generous person.
On August 15, 1989 Toran died in an automobile accident in Marina Del Rey, California. More than 500 friends and family of a lifetime attended his services at Broad Ripple High School gymnasium.
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