Celebrating Those Who Follow The Dodd Way
By: Jennifer Herseim | Categories: Featured Stories
Bobby Dodd’s coaching success on the gridiron cemented his legacy in college football history. It was his actions off the field, instilling in his players values that would lead to success outside of football, that still inspires coaches, even decades later.
This year marks the 50th anniversary of The Dodd Trophy presented by PNC Bank. The national coaching award is named in Dodd’s honor to recognize a successful college coach whose program stresses Dodd’s core values.
“Bobby Dodd had three main pillars that he lived by: scholarship, leadership, and integrity. He wanted his players to be successful long after the crowd stopped cheering, and so he made sure they graduated,” says Jim Terry, IM 72, chairman of the board for The Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year Foundation.
The winner of the 2025 trophy will be announced during the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl later this year. This October, Georgia Tech will honor the 50th anniversary of The Dodd Trophy with a series of events, including a special presentation at the Yellow Jackets’ Oct. 11 game against Virginia Tech, which will recognize five former winners with ties to Georgia Tech: George O’Leary, Paul Johnson, Bobby Ross, Bill Curry, and Ralph Friedgen. The night before, Johnson will be inducted into the Georgia Tech Sports Hall of Fame. The Dodd Trophy will also be on display at the Alumni Association’s Leadership Tailgate.
Unlike other awards, The Dodd Trophy is presented to the winner at their university so that the coach’s players, staff, and family can share the moment. Winning The Dodd Trophy is often the highlight of a coach’s career. “It stands for more than just winning football games, although that’s important. It means you did it with integrity,” Terry says.
The Legendary Bobby Dodd
Dodd was hired in 1930 as a backfield football coach under William Alexander and replaced Alexander as Tech’s head coach in 1945. Over the next 22 years, Dodd led the Yellow Jackets to 13 bowl games with nine bowl game victories, a 165-64-8 record, and a national championship in 1952. In 1959, he was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame, and he’s one of only a few to be inducted as both a player
and a coach (inducted in 1993). In 1966, he retired as Tech’s head coach, but stayed at Tech for another nine years as athletic director. He remained connected to Tech until his death in 1988 at 79 years old. In addition to The Dodd Trophy, Dodd’s legacy carries through the Bobby Dodd Institute, an organization that supports individuals with disabilities and their families, as well as the Bobby Dodd Memorial Golf Tournament and Bobby Dodd Stadium at Georgia Tech.
