VALLEY CENTER -- Brian Simnjanovski, a soccer and football star at Escondido High and one of the top punters in San Diego State football history, died Sunday after his Audi sedan slammed into a tree about 10 p.m. He was 27.

Simnjanovski was driving south on Valley Center Road when his car swerved at a curve at Vesper Road, authorities said.

Simnjanovski, who was a graduate student at Cal State San Marcos, was alone in the car and died at the scene, according to the San Diego County medical examiner's office.

Simnjanovski, who was single, was living with his parents -- Djoko and Zorka Simnjanovski -- in Escondido. He is also survived by his brother, Riste.

California Highway Patrol Officer Mark Latulippe said police were looking into possible causes of the crash.

"Alcohol is a consideration," Latulippe said, "but obviously, no conclusions have been made yet."

Simnjanovski was an All-Valley League performer in football and soccer at Escondido High, graduating in 1998.

He went on to play four seasons at San Diego State, leading the Aztecs in punting in 2000, 2001 and 2002.

He played for the Berlin Thunder of NFL Europe and had several NFL tryouts, most notably with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

"This news knocks me to the floor," said Santa Fe Christian High football coach Nick Ruscetta, who was the head coach at Escondido High when Simnjanovski played. "He was such a sweet kid. I just saw him at In-N-Out and it sounded like things were going very well for him."

Simnjanovski was a soccer player first, and he was in the stands watching Escondido play football before asking for a tryout.

"We had no kicking game, so the next Monday, he came to me and asked if he could kick for us," Ruscetta said. "I really didn't know him then, but we needed help. So he kicked a few balls out of sight, and we gave him a uniform."

Simnjanovski didn't have any college scholarship offers after graduation, so Steve Bridges -- now the athletic director at Escondido and special teams coach for the Cougars when Simnjanovski played -- called in a favor.

Bridges was a graduate assistant coach at San Diego State and asked Dave Ohten -- then special teams coach for the Aztecs -- if he could bring a player down for a tryout.

"Dave Ohten had a center snap a ball to Brian and the first ball went right through his hands," Bridges said. "Our centers at the high school (level) didn't snap the ball back as quickly as the college snappers.

"Brian caught the second ball and boomed about a 70-yard punt. After that, he was a part of the team."

Simnjanovski averaged 42.8 yards on 55 punts in 2000, 43.6 yards on 63 punts in 2001 and 42.1 yards on 60 punts in 2002.

The only other Aztecs punters with better statistics are Noel Prefontaine, who has played for nearly 20 years in the Canadian Football League, and Mike Saxon, who starred in the NFL for a decade with the Dallas Cowboys.

"This news makes me sick to my stomach," Ohten said when informed of Simnjanovski's death. "I just saw Brian about six months ago. I'm in shock. I really can't put my feelings into words. Brian was a treasure.

"We couldn't pronounce his name, so for four years, we called him 'Smidg,'" Ohten said.

"The first time I saw him punt at that little tryout, I turned to Dave Schramm -- our recruiting coordinator at the time -- and said, 'My God, if we don't offer this kid a scholarship, we're crazy.' He was raw, but the ball came off his foot like a baseball player hitting a home run. He smashed the ball. He was a great young man, a great teammate.

"This is a huge loss for the Aztecs family," Ohten said.

Contact staff writer John Maffei at 760-740-3547.