Vince Dooley Dies at Age 90; Legendary HC Won 1980 National Championship with Georgia

The University of Georgia announced that legendary former head football coach Vince Dooley died Friday at the age of 90.

Dooley was the Bulldogs' head coach from 1964 through 1988, and he also served as the University of Georgia's athletic director from 1979 to 2004.

In his 25 seasons as Georgia's head coach, Dooley went 201-77-10, won six SEC titles and a national championship in 1980.

With Dooley at the helm, the Bulldogs went a perfect 12-0 in 1980 and defeated the Notre Dame Fighting Irish 17-10 in the Sugar Bowl to cement their status as national champions.

That would prove to be Georgia's final national title until last season when Kirby Smart led it to a victory over Alabama in the College Football Playoff National Championship Game.

Dooley's 201 wins rank first in program history, while his winning percentage of .715 is third among those who coached in at least 80 games, behind only Smart and Mark Richt.

In addition to being named SEC Coach of the Year on five occasions, Dooley was the Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year in 1976 and won numerous national coach of the year awards in 1980.

Following the conclusion of his coaching career, Dooley was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1994.

More recently, the University of Georgia named the field at Samford Stadium in Athens, Georgia, Dooley Field in 2019 to honor the longtime coach.

Dooley attended Auburn University and played quarterback before spending eight years as an assistant coach at his alma mater.

When Dooley was named head coach at Georgia, the Bulldogs were coming off three consecutive losing seasons, but they only sported a losing record once during his quarter-century tenure.