Coach Ray Graves, a 1990 College Football Hall of Fame inductee from the University of Florida, passed away April 10. He was 96 years old.

Born on Dec. 31, 1918, Graves played at the University of Tennessee where he was team captain in 1941. After a brief stint with the Philadelphia Eagles, Graves embarked on a coaching career in 1944 at his alma mater.

Graves joined Georgia Tech’s coaching staff in 1947, where he spent 13 seasons under legendary Hall of Fame Coach Bobby Dodd. The University of Florida hired the 41-year-old Graves as the 14th head football coach in school history in January 1960.

In 10 seasons as the Gators’ head coach from 1960-69, Graves won nearly 70 percent of his games, and he led Florida to five bowl games, including its first appearances in the Orange Bowl and Sugar Bowl. Graves instantly made an impact on the sideline, leading the Gators to a 9-2 record in his first season and a Gator Bowl victory over Baylor.

Graves finished his career at Florida with a 70-31-4 record, including a 9-1-1 season in 1969 and a memorable 14-13 victory over Tennessee in his final game as head coach. He coached seven All-America players and three College Football Hall of Famers, including wide receiver Carlos Alvarez, Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Steve Spurrier and defensive end Jack Youngblood. He wrote two books on football, and he 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.

Meanwhile, in nearly 20 years as Florida’s athletics director from 1960-79, Graves ushered in the Title IX era of the 1970s, and he played an important role in the university’s prosperous connection to the invention of Gatorade. Graves is a member of the University of Florida Athletics Hall of Fame, and he was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1990.

“This is simply wonderful,’’ Graves said of his induction into the College Football Hall of Fame. “I never expected this.”

After stepping down as Florida’s athletic director in January 1979 shortly after his 60th birthday, Graves served as a consultant for Steinbrenner Enterprises, owned by former NFF Board Member, 2002 NFF Gold Medal recipient and owner of the New York Yankees George Steinbrenner, in Tampa, Fla. He spent the rest of his retirement years in the Tampa Bay area.

Graves married the former Opal Richardson of Tazewell, Tenn., on Nov. 3, 1942, and they had three daughters together: Rebecca Ann, Katherine Gibbs and Elizabeth Green.

To read more about the life of Ray Graves, click here.