Cecil Dowdy (May 9, 1945 – November 24, 2002) was an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

college football player and businessman. He played offensive tackle for the

University of Alabama The University of Alabama (informally known as Alabama, UA, or Bama) is a public research university in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Established in 1820 and opened to students in 1831, the University of Alabama is the oldest and largest of the publi ...

Crimson Tide from 1964 through 1966. He was a member of both the

1964 Events January * January 1 – The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland is dissolved. * January 5 - In the first meeting between leaders of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches since the fifteenth century, Pope Paul VI and Patriarc ...

and 1965

national championship A national championship(s) is the top achievement for any sport or contest within a league of a particular nation or nation state. The title is usually awarded by contests, ranking systems, stature, ability, etc. This determines the best team, indi ...

teams. Dowdy was also a unanimous selection to the 1966 College Football All-America Team.

Playing career

College

After a successful

high school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...

playing career at Cherokee Vocational High School that culminated with his selection to the 16th annual

AHSAA The Alabama High School Athletic Association (AHSAA), based in Montgomery, is the governing body for interscholastic athletics and activities programs for public schools in Alabama. The AHSAA is a member National Federation of State High School ...

All-Star Game in 1963, Dowdy enrolled at the

with an

athletic scholarship An athletic scholarship is a form of scholarship to attend a college or university or a private high school awarded to an individual based predominantly on his or her ability to play in a sport. Athletic scholarships are common in the United ...

to play on the

football team A football team is a group of players selected to play together in the various team sports known as football. Such teams could be selected to play in a match against an opposing team, to represent a football club, group, state or nation, an all-s ...

. After he played on the freshman football squad for the 1963 season, Dowdy stated as an offensive tackle for the three years that followed. Over those three seasons, Alabama amassed an overall record of 30 wins, two losses and one tie (30–2–1) and won three

Southeastern Conference The Southeastern Conference (SEC) is an American college athletic conference whose member institutions are located primarily in the South Central and Southeastern United States. Its fourteen members include the flagship public universities o ...

(SEC) championships and two

national championships A national championship(s) is the top achievement for any sport or contest within a league of a particular nation or nation state. The title is usually awarded by contests, ranking systems, stature, ability, etc. This determines the best team, indi ...

. In recognition for his play on the field, Dowdy was recognized as a unanimous selection to the 1966 College Football All-America Team as an offensive tackle. He was also awarded the

Jacobs Blocking Trophy The Jacobs Blocking Trophy is the name of several similar annual college football awards bestowed by a conference upon their best blocker. The awards are named in honor of William P. Jacobs, founder and president of Presbyterian College from 1935 t ...

in 1966 as the best blocker in the SEC as selected by the coaches.

Professional

Dowdy was selected in the ninth round (230th overall) of the 1967 NFL Draft by the

Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. Named after original coach and co-founder Paul Brown, they compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (A ...

. After a single season with the Browns that saw little playing time, Dowdy was traded to the Los Angeles Rams before the 1968 season, where he was a member of their practice squad. In April 1969, Dowdy signed with the

Saskatchewan Roughriders The Saskatchewan Roughriders are a professional Canadian football team based in Regina, Saskatchewan. The Roughriders compete in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member club of the league's West Division. The Roughriders were founded in ...

of the

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; french: Ligue canadienne de football—LCF) is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a ci ...

. He was later waived by the team in July 1969.

Death

Dowdy died on November 24, 2002, at

Helena, Arkansas Helena is the eastern portion of Helena–West Helena, Arkansas, a city in Phillips County, Arkansas. It was founded in 1833 by Nicholas Rightor and is named after the daughter of Sylvanus Phillips, an early settler of Phillips County and the n ...

at the age of 57. His death was ruled accidental as his shotgun discharged and hit him in his lower jaw when he was retrieving a duck he hit during a hunting trip at

Lambrook, Arkansas Lambrook is an unincorporated community in Phillips County, Arkansas, United States. Lambrook is located on Arkansas Highway 20, west-northwest of Elaine. Lambrook has a post office A post office is a public facility and a retailer that ...

. He was pronounced dead at 11:45 a.m at Helena Regional Medical Center.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dowdy, Cecil 1945 births 2002 deaths People from Colbert County, Alabama Players of American football from Alabama American football offensive tackles All-American college football players Alabama Crimson Tide football players Cleveland Browns players Los Angeles Rams players Saskatchewan Roughriders players Hunting accident deaths Accidental deaths in Arkansas Deaths by firearm in Arkansas Firearm accident victims in the United States