Former NFL running back O.J. Simpson dies of cancer at age 76

As remarkable on the field as he ultimately became dubious off it, O.J. Simpson transcended football.

A beloved All-American at USC who developed into one of the finest running backs in NFL history with the Buffalo Bills, Simpson would go on to achieve mainstream celebrity as an actor and broadcaster before becoming one of the most notorious murder suspects in American history and eventually serving nearly nine years in prison on an unrelated conviction for armed robbery.

Simpson died of cancer on Wednesday, according to a statement released on his official X account. He was 76 years old.

Enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1985, Simpson's notoriety grew in his post-playing days as an NFL commentator and Hollywood actor. His fame would abruptly turn to infamy in June of 1994, though, after Simpson's ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and her friend, Ronald Goldman, were found murdered at her home in Brentwood, California. Simpson was charged with the killings of Brown Simpson and Goldman, but ultimately found not guilty in one of the most highly publicized and controversial trials in United States history. Simpson's image was forever altered, with ignominy completely overwhelming his spectacular football career and the ensuing celebrity that spawned from it.

Born Orenthal James Simpson on July 9, 1947, in San Francisco, Simpson would come to be known as O.J. or "Juice."

He began his college football days at San Francisco City College, where he racked up 54 touchdowns and 2,552 rushing yards over two seasons in 1965 and '66 before transferring to USC. Under legendary coach John McKay, Simpson would become one of the most decorated Trojans in the program's storied chronicle.

As a junior in 1967, Simpson led the nation with