Vincent Joseph Dooley, the longtime head football coach and Athletic Director at the University of Georgia, leading twenty-five years of success on the gridiron passed away today. He was 90 years old.
Dooley led the Georgia Bulldogs to the 1980 National Championship title, beating Penn State in the Sugar Bowl in New Orleans.
From 1964-1988, Dooley amassed a career record of 201-77-10 including six Southeastern Conference titles, 20 bowl games and only one losing season.
“Our family is heartbroken by the death of Coach Dooley,” said current Georgia head football coach Kirby Smart on Twitter. “He was one of a kind with an unmatched love for UGA! He and Barbara embraced my family from day one. He will be missed in our community, university, and in college athletics.”
Dooley is the fourth-winningest coach in SEC history. Dooley only trailed Bear Bryant, Steve Spurrier and Nick Saban.
“Marty, the girls, and I are truly heartbroken by the passing of Coach Vince Dooley,” said Governor Brian Kemp in a written statement. “Like most Georgians, especially those who attended our state’s flagship university, we were monumentally impacted by this legendary man, proud husband, loving father, and cherished friend. Not only will that impact continue to be felt by countless Georgia students and fans, it will also live on in our family that was profoundly influenced and made better by having personally known this man of greatness.”
Dooley had an idea to put the famous ‘G logo’ that was fashioned after Vince Lombardi’s Green Bay Packers in 1963. Dooley wanted a black power G on a white background with the red helmet. Eventually, the Bulldogs were granted permission to use the ‘G logo’ Later, Grambling State adopted the G logo as well.
Dooley was born in Mobile, Alabama, on September 4, 1932. Dooley would later graduate from Auburn University in 1954 with a degree in business management, while playing for legendary head coach Shug Jordan, before serving in the Marine Corps for two years.
The University of Georgia announced that Dooley died peacefully at his Athens home in the presence of his wife, Barbara, and their four children, . No cause of death was given.