Ed Marinaro

Ed Marinaro is an American actor who started out as a professional football running back. Born in New York City, he played college football at Cornell, topped the nation in rushing in 1971, won the Maxwell Award and finished as runner-up for the Heisman Trophy. He then spent six seasons in the NFL, playing for the Minnesota Vikings, New York Jets and Seattle Seahawks, and in 1991 he was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame. After leaving football he turned to acting, joining Hill Street Blues in 1981 as officer Joe Coffey and remaining until 1986. He was also a cast member on Laverne & Shirley and Sisters, played a head football coach in the comedy Blue Mountain State from 2010 to 2011, and had a part in the 2006 film Circus Island.