Position: Coach
School: Georgia
Years: 1964-1988
Inducted: 1994
Place of Birth: Mobile, AL
Date of Birth: 9/4/1932

Vince Dooley's fame spreads across two states. He grew up in Mobile, Alabama, attended Auburn University, was captain of the football team there, and was Auburn assistant coach eight years. In 1964, at age 32, Dooley moved to the University of Georgia. There, he was sometimes head football coach, sometimes director of athletics, sometimes both. He performed at the top level everywhere. No wonder, then, that he has been elected to both the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame and the Georgia Sports Hall of Fame. In 25 years' coaching at Georgia, his teams were in 20 bowl games, and his record was 201-77-10. His 1980 team won the national championship. In 1980-83 he had a 4-year streak with a record of 43-4-1. He became director of athletics in 1979 and continued in that position after finishing his coaching career in 1988. As director, he built a program that included 18 teams in men's and women's sports. National championships were won in men's tennis and women's gymnastics. In the decade of the 1980's, Georgia teams led the Southeastern in number of conference championships won. The Dooley record shows a strong regard for academics. He has a master's degree in history. Among his football players, 7 received graduate scholarships from the National Football Foundation, 11 won similar grants from the NCAA, and 65 were all-Southeastern Conference Academic All-Stars. He was FWCA Coach of the Year in 1980. In 1988 he started a fund drive which has raised over $2 million for the university libraries. He kicked off the drive with his own donation, $100,000. Dooley's actions made him widely respected; he has been honored as Georgian of the Year and twice as Sports Executive of the Year.