Ray Graves Samuel Ray Graves ( born December 31 , 1918 ) is a former American college and professional football player and former college football coach . He is a native of Tennessee and an alumnus of the University of Tennessee , where he played college football . Graves is best known as the former head coach of the Florida Gators football team that represents the University of Florida . Early life and education . Graves was born in Knoxville , Tennessee on December 31 , 1918 . He was the son of a Methodist minister , and he realized that his best ( and perhaps only ) opportunity to attend college would be to earn an athletic scholarship . Tennessee Wesleyan College , a small Methodist - affiliated college located in Athens , Tennessee , recognized his athletic talent and offered him a full scholarship . Coach Robert Neyland of the University of Tennessee recognized his stand - out play and arranged for Graves to transfer to Tennessee . After he graduated from Tennessee in 1942 , he attempted to volunteer for the U . S . Navy following the United States ' entry into World War II , but he was rejected when he failed his physical because he was deaf in one ear . He would have been accepted only in a grave emergency . Playing career . College . Graves played college football for one year at Tennessee Wesleyan College , then two years at the University of Tennessee , where he was the team captain during his senior year in 1941 . He replaced Norbert Ackerman as the starting center in 1941 . During his time as a Volunteer , he played in the Sugar Bowl following his junior season , and he earned third - team All - Southeastern Conference honors following his senior season . Professional . The Philadelphia Eagles selected Graves in the ninth round ( seventy - third pick overall ) in the 1942 NFL Draft , and he played for the Eagles for three seasons , including the temporary 1943 merger of the Eagles and the Pittsburgh Steelers known as the " Steagles . " The Steagles were formed when the National Football League had to limit rosters and cut back to eight teams because of manpower shortages during World War II . In three NFL seasons , Graves played in 28 games , starting in 15 of them . Coaching career . Graves was retained as a volunteer coach at the University of Tennessee in 1943 , but Tennessee did not field a football team that season due to World War II . Graves was hired as an assistant coach for the Volunteers in 1944 , and resigned as the offensive line coach following the 1945 season to play for the Eagles again . Following his playing career , Graves was the defensive coach at Georgia Tech under head coach Bobby Dodd . Under Dodd , Graves and offensive coach Frank Broyles , the Yellow Jackets won Southeastern Conference championships in 1951 and 1952 , the 1951 Orange Bowl , the 1952 Sugar Bowl and the 1952 national championship . Graves is widely credited with creating what was then known as the " monster defense " — the modern alignment of the free safety and strong safety in the defensive backfield . In 1960 Graves was hired as head football coach of the University of Florida , replacing fellow Tennessee alumnus Bob Woodruff . He served as the Gators ' head coach for ten years from 1960 to 1969 . Graves led Florida to five bowl appearances and he coached several outstanding players , including quarterback and Heisman Trophy recipient Steve Spurrier ( 1964 – 1966 ) , running back and future NFL first - round draft pick Larry Smith ( 1966 – 1968 ) and defensive end and NFL Hall of Fame inductee Jack Youngblood ( 1968 – 1970 ) . Among the many highlights of the Graves era was the 1963 Gators ' 10 – 6 upset victory over coach Bear Bryant ' s 1963 Alabama Crimson Tide in Tuscaloosa . In one of the more interesting footnotes to his football legacy , Graves allowed Dr . Robert Cade , a professor in the University of Florida College of Medicine , to conduct dehydration analysis and rehydration experiments using team members which led to the formulation of Gatorade in 1965 . After seeing the formula ' s potential in an intrasquad scrimmage , Graves asked Cade to make enough for the entire team for the next game against Louisiana State ; the LSU Tigers wilted in the 102 - degree game - day heat , and the Gators came from behind to win in the second half . He told his friend Kansas City Chiefs head coach Hank Stram of the drink ' s effectiveness , a move that eventually led to Gatorade becoming the official sports drink of the NFL . Graves ' saved the best for last . His 1969 Gators posted a 9 – 1 – 1 record , upset the Tennessee Volunteers , 14 – 13 , in the Gator Bowl , and were ranked fourteenth in the final AP Poll . After achieving an all - time win - loss record at Florida of 70 – 31 – 4 ( . 686 ) and four final top - twenty poll rankings ( 1960 , 1965 , 1966 , 1969 ) , Graves stepped down to make room for former Gators quarterback Doug Dickey to return to his alma mater as the new head coach of the 1970 Gators . Graves remained the winningest coach in Gators football history until his former quarterback , Steve Spurrier , surpassed him in 1996 . Graves ' Gators are remembered for their remarkable academic success as much as their athletic success . Ninety - three percent of his football players graduated , and more than half of the graduates ultimately earned law or medical degrees . Graves ' Silver Sixties Gators remain a close - knit group , and have held an annual reunion with their coach every year since 1970 . After resigning as Florida ' s head football coach , Graves remained the university ' s athletic director until 1979 , a position he had also held since becoming the football coach in 1960 . His remaining tenure as athletic director was notable for the University of Florida ' s embrace of the challenges and opportunities in women ' s college sports presented by Title IX . Under Graves ' guidance , Florida ' s women ' s sports program began its climb to become one of the top ten women ' s programs in Division I sports . After he retired as athletic director in 1979 , he worked for another year as a special assistant for fund raising in the office of the university president . Graves was inducted into the Florida Sports Hall of Fame in 1972 , the University of Florida Athletic Hall of Fame in 1981 , the Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame in 1990 , and the College Football Hall of Fame in 1990 . When Steve Spurrier returned to Gainesville as the Gators ' head coach in 1990 , he created the team ' s new most valuable player award , the Ray Graves Trophy , with the annual recipients selected by the players themselves . The Athletic Office at the University of Florida ' s Ben Hill Griffin Stadium was named in honor of Graves during the 2005 Gator Football season . Steagles 60th anniversary . On August 17 , 2003 , the Pittsburgh Steelers celebrated the sixtieth anniversary of the Steagles in pregame and halftime ceremonies for the 2003 season opener at Heinz Field . The Steelers recreated the era in their " Turn Back the Clock " ceremonies , including broadcasting in black and white on the Jumbotron and airing World War II footage during the national anthem . All live entertainment was done to reflect the 1940s . Graves was on - hand as six of the nine surviving members of that Steagles team were honored by the Steelers during halftime . During the festivities , the Steelers gave each of the six members a replica Steagles jersey to wear . The jersey worn by Graves was returned to the team after the festivities . It was sold by the Steelers a month later , to Bill Ponko , a private collector of sports memorabilia to benefit a local charity . Later life . After resigning as the University of Florida ' s athletic director in 1980 , Graves became vice president of Steinbrenner Enterprises in Tampa , Florida . He retired in 1989 , and continues to live in Tampa with his wife , Opal .