What is Al Cowlings' Net Worth?
Al Cowlings is an American retired professional football player who has a net worth of $250 thousand. Although he played linebacker in the NFL, Al Cowlings is probably best known for his role in assisting his close friend O.J. Simpson flee the police as the driver of the Ford Bronco after the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman. Al was driving the 1993 Ford Bronco involved in the low-speed chase that was followed by helicopter and broadcast on televisions across America. Contrary to popular belief, the Bronco in the chase belonged to Cowlings. He bought an identical model after O.J. bought one. Cowlings would later claim he was forced to drive the car on the chase, after O.J. Simpson threatened to commit suicide unless he drove him home.
Early Life
Allen Cedric "A.C." Cowlings was born on June 16, 1947, in San Francisco, California, and raised in the Potrero Hill neighborhood. He attended Galileo High School where he played football with O.J. Simpson, and they became friends. The two both went on to the City College of San Francisco where they continued playing football together.
Al Cowlings went on to play college ball for the University of Southern California. Cowlings was part of the defensive line nicknamed "The Wild Bunch" that helped the Trojans go undefeated during his senior year.
NFL
In the first round of the 1970 NFL Draft, the Buffalo Bills selected Al Cowlings with the fifth overall pick. He was a starter for the first three years with the team but was then traded to the Houston Oilers. He played in all of the games for the Oilers in 1973 and 1974 and then only five games for the Rams the next year. He was released by the Rams and claimed via the waiver wire by the Seattle Seahawks. Cowlings returned to the Rams in 1977 before signing on with Canadian Football League's Montreal Alouettes for the 1978 season. He attempted an NFL comeback in 1979 with the San Francisco 49ers and then retired from football.
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O.J. Simpson Trial
In June of 1994, O.J. Simpson's ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and her friend Ronald Goldman were found murdered at Nicole's home. Cowlings said he was forced to drive O.J. home after he threatened to commit suicide if Al didn't comply. They got in his 1993 Ford Bronco and led police on a low-speed chase that was followed by helicopter and broadcast on the news all across America. Cowlings was arrested for aiding O.J. Simpson but had charges dropped for lack of evidence.
White Ford Bronco
As we mentioned earlier, it was actually Al Cowling's Bronco, not OJ's version of the same model, that led police on that infamous chase. The chase through Los Angeles, which spanned 60 miles at low speeds, was broadcast live around the world. And it made the car a national symbol. Simpson's former agent, Mike Gilbert, purchased Cowlings' car soon after the chase for $75 thousand. It's been out of the public eye for the most part, only resurfacing in the past few years in Alcatraz East Museum in Tennessee.
The current Kelley Blue Book value of the car – at its highest price – is $23,000. In 2018 Mike Gilbert revealed he was looking to sell the car for $1 million.
Gilbert has said he's fielded offers as high as $500,000 for the Bronco. He was hoping to sell the car so he can give the money to his kids. As of this writing he appears to still be the owner.
MIKE NELSON/AFP/Getty Images
Personal Life
Al Cowlings got into acting for a bit, first starring in the 1985 film "Bubba Until It Hurts." He played a minor role as Coach Nabors in HBO's football sitcom, "1st & Ten," that also starred O.J. Simpson. Cowlings served as the technical football advisor for the football scenes in 1991's "The Last Boy Scout."
Al Cowlings is a member of USC's 2009 Athletic Hall of Fame class with Junior Seau, John Robinson, and Rodney Peete. The USC Cowlings Residential College is named in his honor.
In 2018, O.J. Simpson went on record to say that he may have CTE and that former teammates and close friends, including Al Cowlings, also struggle with the symptoms of CTE.
