COLLIERVILLE, Tenn. — Woodrow Lowe, a three-time All-America linebacker at the University of Alabama and an 11-year starter for the NFL’s San Diego Chargers, has died. He was 71.
Lowe died at his home in Collierville, Tennessee, on Thursday, according to the National Football Foundation, the organization that oversees the College Football Hall of Fame, which Lowe was inducted into in 2009.
Lowe starred at Alabama from 1972-75 and was the second player in program history to make the All-America first-team list three times. He helped the Crimson Tide reach the Sugar Bowl in 1973, where they lost to eventual national champion Notre Dame, and was a consensus All-America selection the following year.
“Woodrow Lowe was one of the finest linebackers ever to play the game, and we are deeply saddened to learn of his passing,” Archie Manning, the NFF’s chairman, said in the release announcing his death. “A three-time All-American and one of the most decorated linebackers in college football history, he defined excellence at one of the top programs in the country.
“After his playing days, he dedicated himself to shaping young lives as a coach and mentor, carrying forward the lessons of excellence and dedication that defined his own career. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family and the entire Alabama football community.”