Hall of Fame
Position: Coach
Years: Mississippi Valley State (1961-65), Howard (1974-78), Fort Valley State [GA] (1979-85, 1987-96)
Place of Birth: Memphis, Tennessee
Date of Birth: August 15, 1929
Place of Death: Grambling, Louisiana
Date of Death: June 5, 2024
A fixture in historically black college athletics, Doug Porter forged an indelible coaching and administrative career for more than fifty years. In 1961, Porter accepted his first head coaching job at Mississippi Valley State, where he turned around a program that had not had a winning season in five years before his third season in 1963. He led the Delta Devils to a 21-19 record from 1961-65.
He then served as Eddie Robinson's assistant at Grambling State for nine seasons and later took the helm at Howard from 1974-78, coaching the Bison to 30–21–2 record.
After Fort Valley State hired him in 1979, it took Porter only one season to lead the Wildcats to a conference title. He led his teams to six Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference titles, two NCAA playoff appearances. He was the head football coach at Fort Valley State from 1979 to 1985 and again from 1987 to 1996, compiling an overall record at FVSU of 112-66-3.
He only had five losing seasons in his 26 years as a head coach. The Memphis, Tenn., native and seven-time SIAC Coach of the Year served as Fort Valley's athletics director for 16 years. He also acted as chairman of the Division II Football Committee and as president of the National Athletic Steering Committee.
Porter returned to Grambling in 1997, becoming an advisor to former GSU coaches Doug Williams (a 2001 player inductee into the College Football Hall of Fame) and Melvin Spears and coach Rod Broadway. Porter helped lead the effort to establish the Eddie G. Robinson Museum in Grambling, LA.
Born Aug. 15, 1928 and a native of Memphis, Tennessee, Porter served as the quarterback at Xavier University of Louisiana in New Orleans. After serving our country in the United States Army and reaching the rank of first lieutenant, he entered the coaching profession.
