"Ted Hill, the father of Lions quarterback Shaun Hill, died Saturday at St. John's Hospital in Springfield, Mo., hospital spokesman Mike Peters said Sunday night.

An obituary on the Carson-Wall Funeral Services Web site said Hill died at 4:55 p.m. Saturday after an accidental fall. Friends said the accident occurred when Ted was helping Shaun work on a barn at Shaun's home at the Lake of the Ozarks.

"I talked to Shaun, I texted Shaun (Saturday) night," said Don Barcus, who coached football with Ted at Parsons (Kan.) High and will be a pallbearer for Thursday's funeral. "Shaun texted me back and said my dad is the greatest person in the world. They had a very close relationship -- he did with both his sons."

Shaun Hill played football and basketball for his father at Parsons High, where he started three seasons at quarterback and led the Vikings to back-to-back state tournament appearances in basketball."