- Sam Willis Scarber Jr. was an American gridiron fullback who successfully reinvented himself as a film and television supporting actor. Tall, at 6 ft. 3 in., Scarber began his career playing college football for the University of New Mexico where he set several records, including the school's second longest pass play at 88 yards. In 2018, he was inducted into the University of New Mexico's athletics Hall of Honor. Scarber played professionally for the Edmonton Eskimos in the CFL (1971-73) and then as running back and leading rusher for the Detroit Wheels (1974). He was signed by the San Diego Chargers as a backup running back (1975-76). During a stint with the Oakland Raiders in 1977, he sustained injuries which necessitated his retirement from the NFL.
From 1980, Scarber pursued a career on the screen as a prolific general purpose player, tackling just about any type of character role, from emergency physician (Hill Street Blues (1981)) to bus driver (Concrete Beat (1984)), from corrupt prison warden (Quantum Leap (1989) to heavyweight boxer (MacGyver (1985)), from villains (Santa Barbara (1984)) to Special Agents (Beverly Hills, 90210 (1990)) and detectives (Dead Bang (1989)). His motion picture appearances tended to be restricted to the lower part of the credits.
Scarber died on March 8 2026 at the age of 76.
- IMDb mini biography by: I.S.Mowis
- Drafted by the Dallas Cowboys in the third round of the 1971 NFL draft.
Contribute to this page
Suggest an edit or add missing content
