Ray Graves
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| Ray Graves | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Date of birth | December 31, 1918 |
| Place of birth |  Rockwood, TN |
| Position(s) | Center Head Coach Athletic Director |
| College | Tennessee |
| NFL Draft | 1942 / Round 9 |
| Career Record | 70-31-4 |
| Playing Stats | Pro Football Reference |
| Playing Stats | DatabaseFootball |
| Team(s) as a player | |
| 1942 1943 1946 |
Philadelphia Eagles Phil./Pitt. Steagles Philadelphia Eagles |
| Team(s) as a coach/administrator | |
| 1951-1959 1960-1970 1971-1980 |
Georgia Tech (assistant) U. of Florida (HC) U. of Florida (AD) |
| College Football Hall of Fame | |
Samuel Ray Graves (born December 31, 1918 in Rockwood, Tennessee) was an American football offensive lineman in the NFL and former head coach of the University of Florida football team.
[edit] Playing career
Graves played college football at the University of Tennessee, where he was captain in 1941. He was then drafted during the ninth round of the 1942 NFL Draft by the Philadelphia Eagles, for whom he would play with for three seasons. This includes the temporary merger of the Eagles and the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1943 known as the Steagles.
[edit] Coaching career
Graves started his coaching career as a defensive coach at Georgia Tech, under head coach Bobby Dodd.[1] Under these two coaches, along with offensive coach Frank Broyles, the Yellow Jackets won the 1951 Orange Bowl and the 1952 Sugar Bowl.
Graves was hired as Florida's head coach in 1960 to replace fellow Tennessee alumnus Bob Woodruff. Graves led Florida to five bowl appearances during his tenure and coached several outstanding players at Florida, including 1966 Heisman Trophy recipient Steve Spurrier (1963-1966) and NFL Hall of Fame inductee Jack Youngblood (1968-1970).
One of the highlights of the Graves era was a 10-6 upset victory over Bear Bryant's 1962 Alabama team at Tuscaloosa. Alabama would not lose again in Tuscaloosa until 1982. Perhaps his greatest legacy, Graves invited Dr. Robert Cade, then a Florida professor, to begin the experiments that led to the invention of Gatorade, and informed friend and Kansas City Chiefs head coach Hank Stram of the drink's effectiveness, a move that would eventually lead to Gatorade becoming the official sports drink of the NFL.
In 1969, despite achieving an all time record at Florida of 70-31-4,[2] Graves stepped down to make room for Doug Dickey to return to his alma mater as head coach for the 1970 season. Graves would serve as athletic director at Florida from 1971 through 1980.
Graves would remain the winningest coach in Florida football history until his former player, Steve Spurrier, surpassed him in 1996[3]. The Athletic Office at University of Florida's Ben Hill Griffin Stadium was named in honor of Graves during the 2005 Gator Football season.
Graves now resides in Tampa, Florida with his wife, Opal.
[edit] References
- ^ "Coaches Broyles, Graves Back Home", Tech Topics, Georgia Tech Alumni Association, Fall 1999. Retrieved on 2007-09-08.
- ^ All-Time Coaching Records by Year
- ^ CNNSI.com - College Football - Spurrier resigns after 12 seasons at Florida - Wednesday January 09, 2002 03:54 PM
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| Preceded by Bob Woodruff |
University of Florida Head Football Coach 1960–1970 |
Succeeded by Doug Dickey |
| Preceded by Bob Woodruff |
University of Florida Athletic Director 1960–1980 |
Succeeded by Bill Carr |
