Allen Cedric “A.C.” Cowlings is a retired American professional football player who competed in the National Football League (NFL) for several teams, including the Buffalo Bills, Houston Oilers, Los Angeles Rams, Seattle Seahawks, and San Francisco 49ers. He also pursued acting and appeared as Coach Nabors in the 1980s sitcom 1st & Ten: The Championship. Born and raised in California, Cowlings developed a passion for football at an early age. He played for his high school team before continuing his football career at college. In 1970, he entered the professional league after being selected by the Buffalo Bills in the NFL Draft. He played for the team for three seasons before being traded to the Houston Oilers, where he spent two seasons. He subsequently joined the Los Angeles Rams for one season. In 1976, Cowlings became one of the original members of the Seattle Seahawks before returning to the Rams the following year. He ended his professional football career in 1978 after playing one season with the San Francisco 49ers. Following his retirement from football, he briefly explored opportunities in acting. Cowlings also became widely known for his connection to the O. J. Simpson case, as he was a close friend of both Simpson and Nicole Brown.
Childhood & Early Life
Allen Gordon Cowlings, widely known as Al Cowlings, was born on June 16, 1947, in San Francisco, California. He spent his childhood in the city’s Potrero Hill neighborhood.
Growing up, Cowlings participated in various neighborhood activities and became a member of the Superiors social club. He regularly attended its meetings at the Booker T. Washington Community Center.
Cowlings attended Galileo Academy of Science and Technology, which was then known as Galileo High School, where he played on the school’s football team. After graduating, he enrolled at the City College of San Francisco and continued pursuing his passion for football.
He later transferred to the University of Southern California (USC), where he established himself as an outstanding defensive tackle. Following his senior year, he earned All-American honors. During that season, he became a key leader of the Trojans’ defensive line and contributed significantly to the team’s unbeaten 1969 campaign. The defensive unit earned the nickname “The Wild Bunch,” inspired by the Western film of the same name released that year.
Sports Career of Al Cowlings
Al Cowlings entered professional football after being selected by the Buffalo Bills in the first round of the 1970 NFL Draft. Wearing jersey number 83, he appeared in 13 games during his rookie season and started 12 of them. In 1971, he started all 14 games in which he played, maintaining a similar level of performance the following season.
After the 1971 season, Cowlings was traded to the Houston Oilers. He wore jersey number 76 while playing for the team and appeared in 28 games over his two-season stint.
In 1975, Cowlings joined the Los Angeles Rams and played in five regular-season games. Later that year, he made his postseason debut in a playoff victory against the St. Louis Cardinals.
In 1976, Cowlings became an inaugural member of the Seattle Seahawks after the Rams made his contract available to other teams. His time with Seattle was brief, as he appeared in just one game before returning to the Rams.
Cowlings played 14 games for the Rams during the 1977 season before taking a break from professional football. He subsequently joined the San Francisco 49ers for the 1979 season, making 12 appearances before bringing his playing career to a close.
Acting Career of Al Cowlings
While playing professional football, Cowlings appeared in the 1974 documentary O.J. Simpson: Juice on the Loose. He later featured in another documentary, 30 for 30, in 2010.
His acting career began in 1985 with the sports video Bubba Until It Hurts, which also featured Bubba Smith, Bill Bumiller, and Vince Cannon.
In 1986, Cowlings joined the cast of the HBO sitcom 1st & Ten: The Championship, playing Coach Nabors. His first appearance was in an episode titled “A Family Affair.” He subsequently appeared in 11 additional episodes before leaving the series in 1989. His final appearance came in the fourteenth episode of the show’s fifth season.
Cowlings also contributed his football expertise to film productions. In 1991, he worked as a technical adviser on the action comedy The Last Boy Scout, helping the filmmakers stage and film football sequences. In 1993, he served as the football coordinator for the sports drama Rudy.
Involvement in the O. J. Simpson Case
Al Cowlings had known O. J. Simpson since childhood. Both attended Galileo High School, the City College of San Francisco, and the University of Southern California, playing football at each institution. Their professional careers also overlapped, as they were teammates with both the Buffalo Bills and the San Francisco 49ers. Despite following different paths later in life, the two maintained a close friendship.
During their high school years, Cowlings dated Marguerite Whitley, who later became Simpson’s first wife and the mother of his three children. Their relationship initially created tension between Cowlings and Simpson, but the two eventually preserved their friendship.
Cowlings became the godfather of Simpson and Whitley’s son, Jason, who was born in 1970. When Simpson married Nicole Brown in February 1985, Cowlings served as one of the groomsmen at the wedding.
Brown divorced Simpson in 1992 after years of alleged domestic abuse. On June 13, 1994, Brown and her friend, Ron Goldman, a restaurant waiter, were found murdered outside her home in Los Angeles. Postmortem examinations established that both had died from stab wounds. Brown had sustained multiple injuries to her neck and scalp, as well as defensive wounds on her arms.
Brown’s funeral was held on June 16, 1994, which also happened to be Cowlings’ 47th birthday. He attended the service and helped with duties as a gatekeeper and pallbearer.
Simpson became a central suspect in the investigation into Brown’s murder and was expected to surrender to police the day after the funeral. When he failed to appear at the police station, authorities eventually located him inside a moving white Ford Bronco owned by Cowlings.
The incident developed into a widely televised, slow-speed police pursuit watched by an estimated 95 million people. During the chase, Cowlings contacted authorities and explained that he was driving the vehicle while Simpson sat beside him with a gun pointed at his own head. According to Cowlings, Simpson was threatening to kill himself unless he was taken to his Rockingham estate in Brentwood.
After the vehicle reached the estate, Simpson eventually surrendered to the authorities. Cowlings was also arrested and accused of assisting a fugitive.
Cowlings was released after posting $250,000 in bail. However, the district attorney did not pursue a case against him because of insufficient evidence.
While Simpson’s trial was underway, Cowlings held a press conference near the courthouse. He invited members of the public to call a 900-number telephone line to ask him questions, although he excluded questions concerning the murders and the trial. This was his only public statement directly associated with the case at the time. He later acknowledged that Simpson had abused Brown.
Family & Personal Life
Apart from his highly publicized connection to the O. J. Simpson case, Al Cowlings has generally maintained a private personal life.
In 2016, reports revealed that he had married magazine model Marion T. LaHood approximately 23 years earlier in a private ceremony in Las Vegas, Nevada. Records from the Clark County Clerk’s Office indicated that the couple applied for a marriage license on July 30, 1993, and exchanged vows the following day.
It remained unclear whether the marriage was still in effect. In May 2016, LaHood was reportedly living in Hawthorne, California, while Cowlings resided in Santa Barbara.
Cowlings’ professional activities after retiring from football have also attracted occasional media attention. In 2012, Fox News reported that he was working as a handbag sales representative. In 2014, USA Today cited a former teammate who said Cowlings had been working for B. Wayne Hughes, the founder of Public Storage.
Joe Kolkowitz, a former tennis player and friend of Cowlings, told USA Today that Cowlings was enjoying retirement in late 2012. However, in May 2016, Radar Online reported that he was working as a personal trainer in Santa Barbara and volunteering at a horse-therapy ranch.
The white Ford Bronco used by Cowlings and Simpson during the infamous police pursuit was later purchased by Mike Gilbert, Simpson’s former sports agent. The vehicle was subsequently loaned to the Alcatraz East Crime Museum, where it was displayed as part of an exhibit devoted to the O. J. Simpson murder case.
Cowlings received recognition for his contributions to USC athletics when he was inducted into the USC Athletic Hall of Fame in 2009, alongside Junior Seau, Rodney Peete, and John Robinson. In 2017, USC also named a residential college in his honor.