By Eric Blum
(Src: DailyMail)
Colorful former Miami Dolphins star Randy Crowder has died at 72, with the team announcing his passing on Wednesday morning.
Crowder was selected in the sixth round of the 1974 NFL Draft by the Miami Dolphins and played for the team for two years before moving on.
He played for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for two more seasons before taking his final NFL snap in 1980.
No immediate cause of death was given for Crowder by the team.
Crowder was out of the NFL for a year in between his time with the Dolphins and Buccaneers after he was sensationally arrested and jail for a year for selling cocaine in May 1977.
About 15 officers from the Miami Police Department special investigations section arrested the two at a motel in the south part of Miami, per the New York Times.
Former Dolphins first-round pick Don Reese and Crowder reportedly sold one pound of the substance to an undercover cop, landing behind bars after a plea-bargaining agreement.
The estimated street value of what Crowder and Reese were selling was $233,000, nearly 50 years ago. Their arrest was end the of an eight-day investigation.
After officially retiring from the NFL in 1982, he served as the defensive line coach at Penn State, his alma mater, for two years under his former head coach Joe Paterno.
Reese’s NFL career continued with the New Orleans Saints and San Diego Chargers, as well as a brief stint with the USFL’s Birmingham Stallions.
Crowder had three children, with one of them, Channing Crowder, having an NFL career himself.
Channing was a third-round draft pick of the Dolphins in 2005 and played for the team through to the end of 2011 season.
Randy Crowder finish his NFL career with 19 career sacks and three fumble recoveries.
