Paul William "Bear" Bryant

Born September 11, 1913

Paul William "Bear" Bryant (September 11, 1913 – January 26, 1983) was an American college football coach. He was best known as the longtime head coach of the University of Alabama football team. He was also known for his trademark houndstooth hat. Before arriving at Alabama, Bryant was head football coach at University of Maryland, the University of Kentucky and Texas A&M University.

Bryant took over the Alabama football team in 1958. After winning a combined four games the last three years, the Tide went 5-4-1 in Bryant's first season. The next year, in 1959, Alabama beat Auburn and appeared in a bowl game, the first time either had happened in the last six years. In 1961, under his leadership, Alabama went 11-0 and defeated Arkansas in the Sugar Bowl to claim the national championship.

The next three years (1962–1964) featured Joe Namath at quarterback and were among Bryant's finest. The 1962 season ended with a victory in the Orange Bowl over Bud Wilkinson's University of Oklahoma Sooners. The following year ended with a victory in the 1963 Sugar Bowl. In 1964, the Tide won another national championship but lost to the University of Texas in the Orange Bowl in the first nationally televised college game in color. The Crimson Tide would repeat as champions in 1965 after defeating Nebraska in the Orange Bowl. Coming off of back-to-back national championship seasons, Bryant's Alabama team went undefeated in 1966 and defeated a strong Nebraska team 34-7 in the Sugar Bowl. However, Alabama finished third in the nation behind co-national champions Michigan State and Notre Dame.

For years, Bryant defended charges of racism by saying the social climate didn't allow him to go after black players. He finally was able to convince the administration to allow him to do it after scheduling the Tide's 1970 season opener against a strong University of Southern California team led by African-American fullback Sam Cunningham. By 1973, one-third of the team's starters were African-American.

In 1971, Bryant installed the wishbone offense. The change helped make the remainder of the decade a successful one for the Crimson Tide.

Bryant coached at Alabama for 25 years, winning six national titles (1961, 1964, 1965, 1973, 1978 and 1979) and 13 SEC championships. Bryant's win over in-state rival Auburn University, coached by former Bryant assistant Pat Dye, in November 1981 was Bryant's 315th as a head coach, which was the most of any head coach at that time.