Bobby Dodd

Robert Lee Dodd (November 11, 1908 – June 21, 1988) was an American college football coach at Georgia Tech. He was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame as a player and coach, something that only three people have accomplished.

After playing quarterback at the University of Tennessee, he served as an assistant coach under William Alexander at Georgia Tech beginning in December 1930. Alexander made the hire while Dodd was still a student at Tennessee. Dodd succeeded Alexander in 1945 as the third head coach at the Institute. He retired from coaching after the 1966 season, compiling a 165–64–8 record. He also served as Athletic Director from 1950 until 1976. All together, Dodd served Georgia Tech 57 years in various capacities. Bobby Dodd died in June 1988 at the age of 79 in Atlanta, Georgia.

Early life

Robert Lee "Bobby" Dodd was born in 1908 in Galax, Virginia. He was named after another famous Virginian, Confederate General Robert E. Lee. Dodd was the youngest of Edwin and Susan Dodd's four children. In the fall of 1921, the Dodd family relocated to Kingsport, Tennessee. When Dodd was twelve years old and weighed only 100 pounds, he made the seventh-grade team of Kingsport's first organized football program.