Pepper Rodgers

Pepper Rodgers
Sport(s) Football
Biographical details
Born October 8, 1931
Atlanta, Georgia
Playing career
1951–1953 Georgia Tech
Position(s) Quarterback, kicker
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
1958–1959
1960–1964
1965–1966
1967–1970
1971–1973
1974–1979
1984–1985
1995		 Air Force (assistant)
Florida (assistant)
UCLA (assistant)
Kansas
UCLA
Georgia Tech
Memphis Showboats
Memphis Mad Dogs
Administrative career (AD unless noted)
2001–2004 Washington Redskins (director of football)
Head coaching record
Overall 73–65–3 (college)
19–19 (USFL)
9–9 (CFL)
Bowls 0–2

Statistics

Accomplishments and honors

Championships

1 Big Eight (1968)

Franklin C. "Pepper" Rodgers (born October 8, 1931) is a former American football player and coach. He served as the head coach at the University of Kansas (1967–1970), University of California, Los Angeles (1971–1973), and the Georgia Institute of Technology (1974–1979), compiling a career college football record of 73–65–3. Rodgers was also the head coach of the United States Football League's Memphis Showboats from 1984 to 1985 and of the Canadian Football League's Memphis Mad Dogs in 1995. He also served as the Washington Redskins director of football from 2001 to 2004. At 69, he was considered for the Redskins' head coaching position before Norv Turner's eventual firing during the 2000 season.[1]

Rodgers played college football at Georgia Tech, where he was a member of the Yellow Jackets' 1952 national championship team as a backup quarterback and placekicker. As a coach, he led the Kansas Jayhawks to a share of the Big Eight Conference title in 1968, the program's most recent conference championship. With the Memphis Showboats of the USFL, Rodgers was the first professional coach of future Pro Football Hall of Fame defensive end Reggie White.

Rodgers is the author of Fourth and Long Gone, a fictional book published in 1985 that is a bawdy roman à clef of his experiences as a college football coach and recruiter. He also wrote an autobiography: Pepper, written with Al Thomy. Rodgers graduated from Georgia Tech in 1955.

Head coaching record

Year Team Overall Conference Standing Bowl/playoffs Coaches# AP°
Kansas Jayhawks (Big Eight Conference) (1967–1970)
1967 Kansas 5–5 5–2 T–2nd
1968 Kansas 9–2 6–1 T–1st L Orange 6 7
1969 Kansas 1–9 0–7 8th
1970 Kansas 5–6 2–5 T–6th
Kansas: 20–22 13–15
UCLA Bruins (Pacific-8 Conference) (1971–1973)
1971 UCLA 2–7–1 1–4–1 8th
1972 UCLA 8–3 5–2 2nd 17 15
1973 UCLA 9–2 6–1 2nd 9 12
UCLA: 19–12–1 12–7–1
Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (Independent) (1974–1979)
1974 Georgia Tech 6–5
1975 Georgia Tech 7–4
1976 Georgia Tech 4–6–1
1977 Georgia Tech 6–5
1978 Georgia Tech 7–5 L Peach
1979 Georgia Tech 4–6–1
Georgia Tech: 34–31–2
Total: 73–65–3
#Rankings from final Coaches Poll.
°Rankings from final AP Poll.

References

  1. ↑ McKenna, Dave (2010-11-19). "The Cranky Redskins Fan's Guide to Dan Snyder". Washington City Paper. Retrieved 2012-11-08.

External links