Aubrey Fowler (June 12, 1920 – February 29, 1996) was an

American football American football, referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada and also known as gridiron football, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular American football field, field with goalposts at e ...

halfback. He played collegiately for the

University of Arkansas The University of Arkansas (U of A, UArk, or UA) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Fayetteville, Arkansas, United States. It is the Flagship campus, flagship campus of the University of Arkan ...

in 1946 and 1947 and professionally for the

Baltimore Colts The Baltimore Colts were a professional American football team that played in Baltimore from 1953 to 1983, when owner Robert Irsay moved the franchise to Indianapolis. The team was named for Baltimore's history of horse breeding and racing. It w ...

in 1948. He was elected to the

Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame The Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame is the hall of fame and museum for sports in Arkansas, United States. The Hall of Fame inducted its first class in 1959. The Hall's museum is located on the west end of the Simmons Bank Arena in North Little Rock, ...

in 1982.

Biography

Robert Aubrey "Cobb" Fowler was born in

Hamburg, Arkansas Hamburg is a city in and the county seat of Ashley County, Arkansas, Ashley County, Arkansas, United States. The population was 2,857 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census. The population declined by more than 10% between 2010 and 2020, ...

and graduated from

Dumas High School Dumas High School (DHS), formerly Dumas New Tech High School, is a comprehensive public secondary school located in Dumas, Arkansas, United States, for students in grades ten through twelve. Dumas is one of two public high schools in Desha Cou ...

Dumas, Arkansas Dumas ( ) is a city in Desha County, Arkansas, Desha County, Arkansas, United States. The population was 4,706 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census. History In 1870, a planter, merchant and surveyor of French descent, William B. Dumas, ...

. A standout athlete in Dumas, Fowler played football and ran track for the Bobcats. Following high school Fowler attended

Arkansas Tech University Arkansas Tech University (ATU) is a public university in Russellville, Arkansas, United States. The university offers programs at both baccalaureate and graduate levels in a range of fields. The Arkansas Tech University–Ozark Campus, a two-yea ...

, playing football for the

Wonder Boys ''Wonder Boys'' is a 1995 novel by the American writer Michael Chabon. It was adapted into a film with the same title in 2000. Plot summary Pittsburgh professor and author Grady Tripp is working on an unwieldy 2,611-page manuscript that is me ...

. He was a member of the 1939 AIC Champion football team before being one of 104 students called into action for the 206th Coast Artillery of the Arkansas National Guard in January 1941. While stationed at Camp Murray at

Tacoma, Washington Tacoma ( ) is the county seat of Pierce County, Washington, United States. A port city, it is situated along Washington's Puget Sound, southwest of Seattle, southwest of Bellevue, Washington, Bellevue, northeast of the state capital, Olympia ...

Fowler's fellow guardsman formed a football team named the Arkansas Travelers. The Travelers easily won their matchups against fellow Puget Sound area service teams, outscoring their opponents 279 to 6. Fowler was the leading scorer and PAT kicker for the team. The West Coast title game, known as the "Khaki Bowl", against the Moffett Field Flyers was cancelled by the military due to the attack on Pearl Harbor. Fowler was subsequently named the 1941 Greater Northwest Football Association Player of the Year. Fowler transitioned to the U.S. Army Air Corps and flew 33 missions over Germany, France, Holland, Belgium and Poland as a bombardier on a B-17 bomber during World War II. After the war, he returned to Arkansas Tech in 1945 and lead the Wonder Boys to another AIC title as Tech outscored their opponents 311 to 6. Fowler scored 102 points during the 1945 season and in some sources led the country in scoring. He was named to the 1945 AIC All-Conference team following the season. Fowler still owns two Arkansas Tech records to this day. In the November 20, 1939 game against Arkansas State Teachers College (now known as the

University of Central Arkansas The University of Central Arkansas (Central Arkansas or UCA) is a public university in Conway, Arkansas, United States. Founded in 1907, the university is one of the oldest in the state. As the state's only normal school at the time, UCA has hist ...

), Fowler punted 27 times for 864 yards in what would turn out to be a 0-0 tie between the two teams. Fowler then transferred to the

to play for the Razorbacks of the Southwest Conference. During the 1946 season the Razorbacks were SWC co-champions and played

LSU Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as Louisiana State University (LSU), is an American Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louis ...

in the

Cotton Bowl Classic The Cotton Bowl Classic (also known as the Cotton Bowl) is an American college football bowl game played annually in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex since January 1, 1937. The game was originally played at its Cotton Bowl (stadium), namesake ...

. Fowler led the team in passing, completing 18 of 40 passes for 320 yards, scoring, 28 points on three touchdowns and 10 PATs, punting, 64 punts for a 34.6 average, and punt returns, 22 returns for 247 yards (11.2 average). He also served as the team's punter and extra point kicker. The 1947 season saw the Razorbacks finish 6-4-1 and defeat William & Mary in the

Dixie Bowl The Dixie Bowl was a post-season college football bowl game held New Year's Day at Legion Field in Birmingham, Alabama.Foldesy, Jody. "Bowls burgeon as big business", ''The Washington Times''. December 21, 1997. Page A1. The game was only held tw ...

. He again led the Razorbacks in punting, 47 punts for a 36.0 average, and punt returns, 23 returns for 395 yards (17.1 average). Fowler still has a presence in the Razorback Record Book. He is currently second in punt return average in a season with 17.17, third in punt return yardage in a season with 395 yards in 1947, fifth in punt return average in a career with 14.27, sixth in punt return yardage in a career with 642 yards, and tied for eighth all-time in punts in a season (64 in 1946). Fowler also owns the ninth longest running play in Arkansas history with an 85-yard run against SMU in 1946 and the tenth longest punt return in school history with a 75-yard runback against North Texas in 1947. Following his collegiate career, Fowler was drafted by the

Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The team plays its ...

in the 18th round of the

1948 NFL draft The 1948 NFL draft was held on December 19, 1947, at the Fort Pitt Hotel in Pittsburgh. This was the second year that the first overall pick was a bonus pick determined by lottery, with the previous year's winner Chicago Bears ineligible from t ...

. He would instead join the

of the

All-America Football Conference The All-America Football Conference (AAFC) was a major professional American football league that challenged the established National Football League (NFL) from 1946 to 1949. One of the NFL's most formidable challengers, the AAFC attracted many ...

for the 1948 season. The Colts finished the season as the AAFC-East co-champions, losing to the

Buffalo Bills The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo–Niagara Falls metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East div ...

in the playoffs. Fowler finished the season third on the team in interceptions for the year. Fowler then left the Colts to enter the coaching profession. He taught for three years in the Pocahontas School District in

Pocahontas, Arkansas Pocahontas is a city in and the county seat of Randolph County, Arkansas, Randolph County, Arkansas, United States, along the Black River (Arkansas), Black River. According to the 2010 Census Bureau, the population of the city was 6,608. Pocahon ...

before moving on to a career with the

Arkansas Game and Fish Commission Arkansas Game and Fish Commission (AGFC) is a state agency of Arkansas, headquartered in Little Rock, Arkansas Little Rock is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Arkansas, most populous city of t ...

. Fowler retired to his hometown of

before passing away in 1996.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fowler, Aubrey 1920 births 1996 deaths American football halfbacks Arkansas Tech Wonder Boys football players Arkansas Razorbacks football players Baltimore Colts (1947–1950) players