Pepperdine mourns athletic chaplain found dead in Malibu The Pepperdine University community is mourning the death of its athletic chaplain, who was found dead on the beach in Malibu on Monday. Maurice Hilliard was athletic chaplain and program director at the Boone Center for the Family, university officials said. "Maurice touched the lives of so many of us at Pepperdine, especially our athletes who looked up to Maurice as a friend, counselor, and mentor," University President Andrew K. Benton said in a statement. He will be greatly missed. KTLA reports that Hilliard was taking a walk Monday morning near the ocean when he collapsed. The coroner told the TV station there was no sign of foul play or trauma to the body. According to the university, Hilliard spent 10 years as an assistant basketball coach at Pepperdine before becoming program director at the Boone Center for the Family. Whitney Houston death report still weeks away, sources say Lennox Little League will not take donation from strip club Photo: Maurice Hilliard. Credit: Pepperdine University