Georgia Force Introduce Vince Dooley as Chairman of the Force Advisory Board

Published on January 8, 2004 under Arena Football League (1987-2008) (AFL I)
Georgia Force News Release


ATLANTA, GA. – Virgil Williams, Owner of the Georgia Force of the Arena Football League, announced today that Vince Dooley will serve as the Chairman of the Force Advisory Board. Dooley enters the position while he will continue in his current role as Athletic Director at the University of Georgia.

"I am very pleased to be welcoming someone of the caliber of Vince Dooley to the Georgia Force organization," said Williams. "Vince's track record in leadership and his proven ability to build winning organizations is unprecedented; therefore it is no surprise that success always follows him. He will add a lot to our team in helping to enhance our image and build upon our overall commitment to winning."

The Georgia Force Advisory Board was established to counsel management on matters, which effect the business operations of the team off the field, and the coaching staff on football operations related to on the field activities. The Board will advise management on community and public affairs, press relations, marketing programs, recruiting, team rules and other team policies. The Board will be made up of community leaders, business leaders and leaders from the sports community.

"Arena Football is one of the fastest growing sports in America and here in Georgia," said Dooley. "I have been impressed with the great longevity of the AFL as it is entering into its 18th season and I am pleased that I'll have the opportunity to advise and consult with the Force as I continue my primary responsibility as Athletic Director at UGA for the next six months. The AFL has passed the test of time and that is what differentiates it from the other football leagues that have come and gone."

Dooley added, "I know the passion that this state and community has for football and the Georgia Force is very attractive as a quality family oriented sports option. When I look at the Georgia Force, I see all the characteristics of a first-class winning organization. I am happy to now have the opportunity to be involved with the Force as I continue my role of Athletic Director at the University of Georgia."

For the past 40 years, Vince Dooley has had an enduring impact on the University of Georgia, Southeastern Conference, and collegiate athletics across the country, now he embarks on making that same influence on the Georgia Force and the Arena Football League.

Dooley has been a man of great foresight in times of charting the future, stability in times of change, and vision in critical times that have shaped the path of college athletics. As Head Football Coach from 1964-88 and Director of Athletics from 1979-2004 at UGA, he has established himself as a leader both throughout the State of Georgia and nationally. His national stature was reinforced when he was chosen from athletic leaders around the country to chair a national sportsmanship summit in the spring, 2003.

There is no stronger indicator of Georgia's overall athletic prominence than its recent success in the annual Sears Directors Cup which includes a second place finish in the 1998-99 season, third place finish in 2000-01, and top ten finishes in four of the past five years. Sears Directors Cup competition annually recognizes the top athletic programs in the country. Under his watch as athletic director (since 1979), Georgia teams have won 18 national championships (nine in the past five years) including an unprecedented four during the 1998-99 year (women's swimming, gymnastics, men's tennis, men's golf). Since Dooley became athletic director, Georgia athletic teams have also won 75 SEC team championships and numerous individual national titles in both men's and women's sports.

His community service and charity work is extensive and includes work with the Heart Fund, Multiple Sclerosis, Juvenile Diabetes, Boy Scouts, the homeless, and he is currently serving on the Advisory Board of the Salvation Army. He has served 28 years as the long-standing chairman of the Georgia Easter Seals Society and in 1987 was named National Volunteer of the Year for his service. For his many contributions, a new Easter Seals facility in Atlanta was built and named for him in 1990. He and his wife, Barbara, are currently co-chairing a fund-raising campaign to establish a Catholic high school in the Athens and northeast Georgia area. Dooley, who was instrumental in the University's campus being designated as an arboretum, was presented with the Georgia Urban Forest Council's 2001 Individual Achievement Award given for significant accomplishments in promoting urban forestry in Georgia.

Dooley was born into an athletic family in the Alabama coastal city of Mobile, September 4, 1932. His younger brother Bill, former head football coach at North Carolina, Virginia Tech, and Wake Forest, was an All-SEC guard at Mississippi State in 1954. After graduating from McGill High in Mobile, Dooley accepted a football scholarship to Auburn where he was an all-star football and basketball player. He received his Bachelors Degree in Business Management ('54) and Masters in History (1963). After serving in the Marines and as an assistant coach at Auburn, he was named head coach of the Bulldogs in December 1963, at the age of 31. Dooley still maintains his academic and continuing education interests by auditing classes at the University in such disciplines as history, political science, art history, and horticulture.

Dooley is married to the former Barbara Meshad of Birmingham. They have four children: Deanna (Mrs. Lindsey Cook), Daniel (married to the former Suzanne Maher), Denise (Mrs. Jay Douglas Mitchell), and Derek (married to the former Allison Jeffers). The Dooley's also have ten grandchildren: Patrick, Catherine and Christopher Cook; Michael and Matthew Dooley; Ty, Joe and Cal Mitchell; and John Taylor Dooley and Peyton Dooley.

Hall of Fame Football Coach
* Inducted into College Hall of Fame in 1994
* 25 seasons (1964-88)
* 20 Bowl Games
* 201 victories ranked third nationally among active coaches at time of his retirement
* 1980 National Championship
* Six SEC Championships (1966, 68, 76, 80, 81, 82)
* 1980 and 82 NCAA National Coach of the Year
* SEC Coach of the Year seven times

* State of Georgia Sports Hall of Fame
* State of Alabama Sports Hall of Fame
* Sun Bowl Hall of Fame
* Georgia-Florida game Hall of Fame
* Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl Hall of Fame

Award Winning Athletic Director
* 2000 Georgia Trend Magazine Top 100 Georgians of the Century.
* 2001 Amos Alonzo Stagg Award from American Football Coaches Association for lifetime contributions to the sport of football.
* 2001 NACDA Division 1-A Southeast Region Athletic Director of the Year.
* 1984 "Georgian of the Year" by the Georgia Association of Broadcasters.
* 1984 "Sports Administrator of the Year" by the State of Georgia Sports Hall of Fame.

The Georgia Force will open their third season of play in the AFL when they kickoff the 2004 season on Sunday, February 8th at 3:00 p.m. against the New York Dragons in the Arena at Gwinnett Center. The league continues to grow in its 18th season, recently adding New Orleans, Philadelphia and Austin to the 16 teams that competed last season. A network-TV sport, the AFL will celebrate its 2nd season on NBC in 2004. Georgia Force season tickets are on sale now and can be purchased with most major credit cards by calling (770) 813-7610 or visit: www.georgiaforce.com.

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Arena Football League (1987-2008) Stories from January 8, 2004


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