Miami Dolphins center Mike Pouncey haunted by Aaron Hernandez suicide

Miami Dolphins center Mike Pouncey became emotional on Thursday when discussing his friend and former college teammate Aaron Hernandez, who committed suicide in his jail cell while serving a life sentence for murder on April 19.

"It was tough," Pouncey said, via the Miami Herald. "Obviously, I don't condone any of the things that he was accused of, but just to have a friend I was so close with, that I felt like was my brother and I know that he felt the same way, it's tough. It's tough for anyone to have a loss in their family, but that one right there hit me and my brother really hard."

For the record, Hernandez wasn't only accused -- he was convicted of murdering Odin Lloyd -- although he had been acquitted in a separate double-murder trial days before his death.

Pouncey recalled the last time he talked to Hernandez, saying he was in "great spirits."

"Just, you know, about the case that he had just won," the Pro Bowl center said. "He was excited, ready to fight the first one again. Just a lot of different stuff. Happy for him."

Pouncey and his twin brother, Maurkice, remained friendly with Hernandez's family and attended the funeral.