VALLEY CENTER, Kan. -- Officials of arenafootball2 said Sunday it will probably be a few days before they know what caused the death of a 31-year-old player who collapsed on the bench during a game.

A spokesman for the team said Julian Yearwood, who had played in 12 games this season for the Bakersfield Blitz, had not had any health problems.

Yearwood, a 6-foot-6, 260-pound fullback-linebacker, was pronounced dead about one hour after he collapsed Saturday night.

He had come off the field inside the air-conditioned Kansas Coliseum about four plays earlier, after blocking a Wichita field goal attempt. The game was called off after his death.

Spokesmen for the Blitz and for arenafootball2 said they did not have details about an autopsy. Calls to the Sedgwick County medical examiner's office were not answered Sunday.

Yearwood had 22½ tackles, six sacks and one interception as well as 20 carries for 72 yards and two touchdowns this year. He was considered the team's leader, said Blitz spokesman Anthony Martinez.

``In a sense he gathered all the troops up when we were going to battle,'' Martinez said Sunday.