John Reaves
Encyclopedia
Thomas Johnson "John" Reaves (born March 2, 1950) is a former American college and professional football
player who was a quarterback
for eleven seasons in the National Football League
(NFL) and three seasons in the United States Football League
(USFL). Reaves played college football
for the University of Florida
, and thereafter, he played professionally for the Philadelphia Eagles
, the Cincinnati Bengals
, the Minnesota Vikings
, the Houston Oilers
and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers
of the NFL, and the Tampa Bay Bandits
of the USFL.
in 1950, but moved to Tampa, Florida
with his mother and grandmother after his father died when he was 9 years old. He attended T.R. Robinson High School
in Tampa, where he was a star high school football
quarterback for the Robinson Knights. As a senior
in 1967, he led the Knights to the Florida Class 2A football semifinal game before losing to the Coral Gables Cavaliers
, who won the state championship and were ranked as the national champions afterward. Reaves was lauded as the State Player of the Year. He also played basketball
and baseball
and ran track for the Knights, and once scored fifty-two points in a high school basketball game.
In 2007, thirty-nine years after he graduated from high school, the Florida High School Athletic Association
(FHSAA) recognized Reaves as one of the "100 Greatest Players of the First 100 Years" of Florida high school football.
, Reaves received an athletic scholarship
to attend the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida
, and played quarterback for coach Ray Graves
and coach Doug Dickey
's Florida Gators football
teams from 1969 to 1971. In his first season as the Gators' starting quarterback, Reaves was part of a group of second-year star players known as the "Super Sophs" that included Reaves, wide receiver
Carlos Alvarez
and running back
Tommy Durrance. Reaves and the Super Sophs led the Gators to their all-time best season record of 9–1–1, and an upset 14–13 victory over the Tennessee Volunteers
in the 1969 Gator Bowl
. Reaves and Alvarez subsequently broke every Florida passing and receiving record during their three-season college careers, and Reaves set the National Collegiate Athletic Association
(NCAA) career passing record of 7,581 yards and the Southeastern Conference
(SEC) career record of fifty-six touchdown
s. Reaves was a first-team All-SEC selection in 1969, a first-team All-American in 1971, and a team captain
in 1971. As a senior, he received the Sammy Baugh Trophy
, recognizing the nation's best college passer, and the Gators' Fergie Ferguson Award, recognizing the "senior football player who displays outstanding leadership, character and courage."
His record as the NCAA's all-time career leader in passing yards was achieved after a controversial fourth-quarter play in the last game of the 1971 regular season, when most members of the Florida Gators defense laid down on the field in the fourth quarter, allowing the Miami Hurricanes
to score a touchdown with enough time for Florida's offense to get the ball back so Reaves could set the record. The event is commonly referred to as the "Florida Flop," and is often recalled bitterly by Hurricanes alumni and fans.
Reaves returned to Gainesville during the NFL off-season and completed his bachelor's degree
in business administration in 1973, and he was later inducted into the University of Florida Athletic Hall of Fame as a "Gator Great" in 1985.
by the Philadelphia Eagles, and he played for the Eagles from to . He was then traded to the Cincinnati Bengals in , the Minnesota Vikings in , and the Houston Oilers in . Reaves jumped to the expansion Tampa Bay Bandits of the start-up USFL in 1983; Reaves was the Bandits' starting quarterback for three seasons under head coach Steve Spurrier
in a pass-oriented offense. After the USFL dissolved after the 1985 season, Reaves returned to the NFL for one final season with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in . Reaves' NFL career was that of a journeyman back-up—and his NFL career total of 3,417 yards showed it. In Reaves' two seasons as the Bandits' full-time starting quarterback, however, he threw for over 4,000 yards passing both years (1984 and 1985), and just over 10,000 total yards in his three-season USFL career (1983–1985).
. He left Gainesville to become an assistant coach for the South Carolina Gamecocks
under head coach Brad Scott
from 1995 to 1997.
Reaves was arrested on gun and drug possession charges in 2008. Reaves entered an Atlanta area substance abuse rehabilitation program in May 2009.
of current USC Trojans football head coach Lane Kiffin
, who is married to Reaves' daughter Layla. Reaves' son David was an assistant coach under Kiffin during Kiffin's one year as the Tennessee Volunteers football
head coach. Reaves' younger son Stephen
was a back-up quarterback for the Toronto Argonauts
of the Canadian Football League
(CFL).
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
player who was a quarterback
Quarterback
Quarterback is a position in American and Canadian football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive team and line up directly behind the offensive line...
for eleven seasons in the National Football League
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
(NFL) and three seasons in the United States Football League
United States Football League
The United States Football League was an American football league which was in active operation from 1983 to 1987. It played a spring/summer schedule in its first three seasons and a traditional autumn/winter schedule was set to commence before league operations ceased.The USFL was conceived in...
(USFL). Reaves played college football
College football
College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...
for the University of Florida
University of Florida
The University of Florida is an American public land-grant, sea-grant, and space-grant research university located on a campus in Gainesville, Florida. The university traces its historical origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its present Gainesville campus since September 1906...
, and thereafter, he played professionally for the Philadelphia Eagles
Philadelphia Eagles
The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They are members of the East Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
, the Cincinnati Bengals
Cincinnati Bengals
The Cincinnati Bengals are a professional football team based in Cincinnati, Ohio. They are members of the AFC's North Division in the National Football League . The Bengals began play in 1968 as an expansion team in the American Football League , and joined the NFL in 1970 in the AFL-NFL...
, the Minnesota Vikings
Minnesota Vikings
The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Vikings joined the National Football League as an expansion team in 1960...
, the Houston Oilers
Tennessee Titans
The Tennessee Titans are a professional American football team based in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. They are members of the South Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League . Previously known as the Houston Oilers, the team began play in 1960 as a charter...
and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a professional American football franchise based in Tampa, Florida, U.S. They are currently members of the Southern Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League – they are the only team in the division not to come from the old NFC West...
of the NFL, and the Tampa Bay Bandits
Tampa Bay Bandits
The Tampa Bay Bandits were a professional American football team based in Tampa, Florida. They were members of the United States Football League . They were a charter member of the USFL and folded along with the league after the 1985 season....
of the USFL.
Early life
Reaves was born in Anniston, AlabamaAnniston, Alabama
Anniston is a city in Calhoun County in the state of Alabama, United States.As of the 2000 census, the population of the city is 24,276. According to the 2005 U.S. Census estimates, the city had a population of 23,741...
in 1950, but moved to Tampa, Florida
Tampa, Florida
Tampa is a city in the U.S. state of Florida. It serves as the county seat for Hillsborough County. Tampa is located on the west coast of Florida. The population of Tampa in 2010 was 335,709....
with his mother and grandmother after his father died when he was 9 years old. He attended T.R. Robinson High School
Thomas Richard Robinson High School
Thomas R. Robinson High School is a high school in Tampa, Florida. It was established in 1958, and is named after Thomas R. Robinson, an educator in Hillsborough County who began teaching in 1917. The school is the second smallest high school in Hillsborough County, with Earl J...
in Tampa, where he was a star high school football
High school football
High school football, in North America, refers to the game of football as it is played in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular interscholastic sports in both of these nations....
quarterback for the Robinson Knights. As a senior
Senior (education)
Senior is a term used in the United States to describe a student in the 4th year of study .-High school:...
in 1967, he led the Knights to the Florida Class 2A football semifinal game before losing to the Coral Gables Cavaliers
Coral Gables High School
Coral Gables Senior High School is a secondary school located at 450 Bird Road in Coral Gables, Florida, USA.Coral Gables SHS opened its doors in 1950; its architectural design reflects a Spanish influence with its open courtyards adorned with water fountains...
, who won the state championship and were ranked as the national champions afterward. Reaves was lauded as the State Player of the Year. He also played basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
and baseball
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
and ran track for the Knights, and once scored fifty-two points in a high school basketball game.
In 2007, thirty-nine years after he graduated from high school, the Florida High School Athletic Association
Florida High School Athletic Association
The Florida High School Athletic Association is an organization whose purpose is to organize sports competition for high school It is a member of the National Federation of State High School Associations ....
(FHSAA) recognized Reaves as one of the "100 Greatest Players of the First 100 Years" of Florida high school football.
College career
After graduating from high schoolHigh school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
, Reaves received an athletic scholarship
Athletic scholarship
An athletic scholarship is a form of scholarship to attend a college or university awarded to an individual based predominantly on his or her ability to play in a sport...
to attend the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida
Gainesville, Florida
Gainesville is the largest city in, and the county seat of, Alachua County, Florida, United States as well as the principal city of the Gainesville, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area . The preliminary 2010 Census population count for Gainesville is 124,354. Gainesville is home to the sixth...
, and played quarterback for coach Ray Graves
Ray Graves
Samuel Ray Graves is a former American college and professional football player and former college football coach. He is a native of Tennessee and an alumnus of the University of Tennessee, where he played college football...
and coach Doug Dickey
Doug Dickey
Douglas Adair "Doug" Dickey is a former American college football player and coach and college athletics administrator. Dickey is a South Dakota native who was raised in Florida and graduated from the University of Florida, where he played college football...
's Florida Gators football
Florida Gators football
The Florida Gators football team represents the University of Florida in the sport of American football. The Florida Gators compete in the Football Bowl Subdivision of the National Collegiate Athletics Association and the Eastern Division of the Southeastern Conference...
teams from 1969 to 1971. In his first season as the Gators' starting quarterback, Reaves was part of a group of second-year star players known as the "Super Sophs" that included Reaves, wide receiver
Wide receiver
A wide receiver is an offensive position in American and Canadian football, and is the key player in most of the passing plays. Only players in the backfield or the ends on the line are eligible to catch a forward pass. The two players who begin play at the ends of the offensive line are eligible...
Carlos Alvarez
Carlos Alvarez (American football)
Carlos Alvarez Vasquez Rodriguez Ubieta is a former American college football player who was an All-American wide receiver for the University of Florida from 1969 to 1971.- Early life :...
and running back
Running back
A running back is a gridiron football position, who is typically lined up in the offensive backfield. The primary roles of a running back are to receive handoffs from the quarterback for a rushing play, to catch passes from out of the backfield, and to block.There are usually one or two running...
Tommy Durrance. Reaves and the Super Sophs led the Gators to their all-time best season record of 9–1–1, and an upset 14–13 victory over the Tennessee Volunteers
Tennessee Volunteers football
The Tennessee Volunteers football team are an American college football team at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville . The NCAA Division I team is also a member of the Southeastern Conference ....
in the 1969 Gator Bowl
Gator Bowl
The Gator Bowl is an annual college football bowl game played at EverBank Field in Jacksonville, Florida. Held continuously since 1946, it is the sixth oldest college bowl, as well as the first one ever televised nationally...
. Reaves and Alvarez subsequently broke every Florida passing and receiving record during their three-season college careers, and Reaves set the National Collegiate Athletic Association
National Collegiate Athletic Association
The National Collegiate Athletic Association is a semi-voluntary association of 1,281 institutions, conferences, organizations and individuals that organizes the athletic programs of many colleges and universities in the United States...
(NCAA) career passing record of 7,581 yards and the Southeastern Conference
Southeastern Conference
The Southeastern Conference is an American college athletic conference that operates in the southeastern part of the United States. It is headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama...
(SEC) career record of fifty-six touchdown
Touchdown
A touchdown is a means of scoring in American and Canadian football. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchdown by advancing the ball into the opponent's end zone.-Description:...
s. Reaves was a first-team All-SEC selection in 1969, a first-team All-American in 1971, and a team captain
Captain (sports)
In team sports, a captain is a title given to a member of the team. The title is frequently honorary, but in some cases the captain may have significant responsibility for strategy and teamwork while the game is in progress on the field...
in 1971. As a senior, he received the Sammy Baugh Trophy
Sammy Baugh Trophy
The Sammy Baugh Trophy is awarded annually to the nation's top college passer. The award is named in honor of former Texas Christian University and Washington Redskins quarterback "Slingin' Sammy" Baugh. The trophy has been given out by the Touchdown Club of Columbus since 1959...
, recognizing the nation's best college passer, and the Gators' Fergie Ferguson Award, recognizing the "senior football player who displays outstanding leadership, character and courage."
His record as the NCAA's all-time career leader in passing yards was achieved after a controversial fourth-quarter play in the last game of the 1971 regular season, when most members of the Florida Gators defense laid down on the field in the fourth quarter, allowing the Miami Hurricanes
Miami Hurricanes football
The Miami Hurricanes football program competes in the Atlantic Coast Conference of the NCAA's Division I Football Bowl Subdivision for the University of Miami. The program began in 1926 and has won five AP national championships...
to score a touchdown with enough time for Florida's offense to get the ball back so Reaves could set the record. The event is commonly referred to as the "Florida Flop," and is often recalled bitterly by Hurricanes alumni and fans.
Reaves returned to Gainesville during the NFL off-season and completed his bachelor's degree
Bachelor's degree
A bachelor's degree is usually an academic degree awarded for an undergraduate course or major that generally lasts for three or four years, but can range anywhere from two to six years depending on the region of the world...
in business administration in 1973, and he was later inducted into the University of Florida Athletic Hall of Fame as a "Gator Great" in 1985.
Professional career
Reaves was selected in the first round (fourteenth pick overall) of the 1972 NFL Draft1972 NFL Draft
The 1972 National Football League Draft was held on February 1–2, 1972.-Player selections:-Round one:-Round two:-Round three:-Round four:-Round five:-Round six:-Round seven:-Round eight:-Round nine:-Round ten:...
by the Philadelphia Eagles, and he played for the Eagles from to . He was then traded to the Cincinnati Bengals in , the Minnesota Vikings in , and the Houston Oilers in . Reaves jumped to the expansion Tampa Bay Bandits of the start-up USFL in 1983; Reaves was the Bandits' starting quarterback for three seasons under head coach Steve Spurrier
Steve Spurrier
Stephen Orr Spurrier is an American college football coach and player. Spurrier is the current head coach of the University of South Carolina's Gamecocks football team. He is also a former professional player and coach...
in a pass-oriented offense. After the USFL dissolved after the 1985 season, Reaves returned to the NFL for one final season with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in . Reaves' NFL career was that of a journeyman back-up—and his NFL career total of 3,417 yards showed it. In Reaves' two seasons as the Bandits' full-time starting quarterback, however, he threw for over 4,000 yards passing both years (1984 and 1985), and just over 10,000 total yards in his three-season USFL career (1983–1985).
Life after the NFL
Reaves was an assistant football coach for the Florida Gators under head coach Steve Spurrier from 1990 to 1992 and again in 1994, working primarily with the Gators quarterbacks, including Shane MatthewsShane Matthews
Michael Shane Matthews is a former American college and professional football player who was a quarterback in the National Football League for all or part of fourteen seasons during the 1990s and 2000s. He played college football for the University of Florida, and thereafter, he played...
. He left Gainesville to become an assistant coach for the South Carolina Gamecocks
South Carolina Gamecocks football
The South Carolina Gamecocks football team represents the University of South Carolina in NCAA Division I college football. The Gamecocks have been a member of the Southeastern Conference since 1992. Steve Spurrier is the current head coach, and the team plays its home games at Williams-Brice...
under head coach Brad Scott
Brad Scott (American football)
Brad Scott was the associate head coach and offensive line coach for the Clemson Tigers football team. Previously, from 1994 to 1998, he was the head coach of the South Carolina Gamecocks.-Career:...
from 1995 to 1997.
Reaves was arrested on gun and drug possession charges in 2008. Reaves entered an Atlanta area substance abuse rehabilitation program in May 2009.
Football family
Reaves is the father-in-lawFather-in-law
A parent-in-law is a person who has a legal affinity with another by being the parent of the other's spouse. Many cultures and legal systems impose duties and responsibilities on persons connected by this relationship...
of current USC Trojans football head coach Lane Kiffin
Lane Kiffin
Lane Monte Kiffin is the current head coach of the University of Southern California Trojans college football team. He was previously the head coach of the Tennessee Volunteers college football team, the Oakland Raiders of the NFL, and the offensive coordinator for the Trojans...
, who is married to Reaves' daughter Layla. Reaves' son David was an assistant coach under Kiffin during Kiffin's one year as the Tennessee Volunteers football
Tennessee Volunteers football
The Tennessee Volunteers football team are an American college football team at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville . The NCAA Division I team is also a member of the Southeastern Conference ....
head coach. Reaves' younger son Stephen
Stephen Reaves
Stephen Reaves is a professional Canadian football quarterback who is currently a free agent. He was signed by the Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League as a street free agent in 2009 but was released at the end of training camp. He was re-signed to the practice roster on June 27, 2009...
was a back-up quarterback for the Toronto Argonauts
Toronto Argonauts
The Toronto Argonauts are a professional Canadian football team competing in the East Division of the Canadian Football League. The Toronto, Ontario based team was founded in 1873 and is one of the oldest existing professional sports teams in North America, after the Chicago Cubs and the Atlanta...
of the Canadian Football League
Canadian Football League
The Canadian Football League or CFL is a professional sports league located in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football, a form of gridiron football closely related to American football....
(CFL).
See also
- 1971 College Football All-America Team1971 College Football All-America TeamThe 1971 College Football All-America team is composed of various organizations that choose College All-America teams that season. The organizations that chose the teams were Associated Press, United Press International, Newspaper Enterprise Association, Football Writers Association of America,...
- Florida GatorsFlorida GatorsThe Florida Gators are the intercollegiate sports teams that represent the University of Florida located in Gainesville, Florida. The "Lady Gators" is an alternative nickname sometimes used by the Gators women's teams...
- Florida Gators football, 1960–1969
- Florida Gators football, 1970–1979
- List of Florida Gators football players
- List of Philadelphia Eagles first-round draft picks
- List of Philadelphia Eagles players
- List of United States Football League players
- List of University of Florida alumni