John Edward McVay (January 5, 1931 – October 31, 2022) was an American football coach and executive. He rose through the coaching ranks from high school, through the college level, and to the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

(NFL). He played college football at

Miami University Miami University (informally Miami of Ohio or simply Miami) is a public research university in Oxford, Ohio. The university was founded in 1809, making it the second-oldest university in Ohio (behind Ohio University, founded in 1804) and the ...

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

, starring as a

center Center or centre may refer to: Mathematics *Center (geometry), the middle of an object * Center (algebra), used in various contexts ** Center (group theory) ** Center (ring theory) * Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentrici ...

Early life

Born in

Bellaire, Ohio Bellaire is a village in Belmont County, Ohio, United States. It is part of the Wheeling, West Virginia Metropolitan Statistical Area, and Wheeling is across the Ohio to the east. The population was 4,278 at the 2010 census, having had its peak i ...

, McVay later moved to Massillon where he played high school football for

Massillon Washington High School Washington High School, commonly referred to as Massillon High School or Massillon Washington High School, is a 9th to 12th grade secondary school within the Massillon City School District in the city of Massillon, Ohio, United States. The schoo ...

and was named second-team All-Ohio. McVay played college football at

. He later married and had three boys, John, Jim, and Tim. His grandson,

Sean McVay Sean McVay (born January 24, 1986) is an American football coach who is the head coach for the Los Angeles Rams of the National Football League (NFL). He became the youngest NFL head coach in the modern era when he was hired by the Rams in 201 ...

, son of Tim, is currently the head coach of the Los Angeles Rams. McVay coached at several Ohio high schools, Michigan State University as an assistant coach, and then head coach at the

University of Dayton The University of Dayton (UD) is a private, Catholic research university in Dayton, Ohio. Founded in 1850 by the Society of Mary, it is one of three Marianist universities in the nation and the second-largest private university in Ohio. The univ ...

Coaching career

McVay became the head coach of the World Football League

Memphis Southmen The Memphis Southmen, also known as the Memphis Grizzlies, were an American football team based in Memphis, Tennessee. They played in the World Football League (WFL), which operated in 1974 and 1975. They played their home games at Liberty Bowl M ...

(also known as the Memphis Grizzlies) in 1974, the WFL's first season. His record at Memphis was 24–7; the league folded in

1975 It was also declared the ''International Women's Year'' by the United Nations and the European Architectural Heritage Year by the Council of Europe. Events January * January 1 - Watergate scandal (United States): John N. Mitchell, H. R. ...

. In 1976, he went to the NFL New York Giants as an assistant coach of research and development under fellow Miami alumnus

Bill Arnsparger William Stephen Arnsparger (December 16, 1926 – July 17, 2015) was an American college and professional football coach. He was born and raised in Paris, Kentucky, served in the United States Marine Corps during World War II, and graduated from Mi ...

. After opening with seven losses, Arnsparger was fired in late October and McVay was promoted. From 1976 to 1978, McVay struggled with a franchise in transition. His first NFL season included a roster with three

rookie A rookie is a person new to an occupation, profession, or hobby. In sports, a ''rookie'' is a professional athlete in their first season (or year). In contrast with a veteran who has experience and expertise, a rookie is usually inexperienced ...

quarterbacks. His contract with the Giants was not renewed after the 1978 season, most likely as the result of a famous loss to the

Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. The team play ...

on November 19.

Executive career

McVay moved on to an administrative position with the

San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National ...

in 1980. He collaborated with head coach Bill Walsh in one of the most successful dynasties in NFL history. As vice president/director of football operations, he presided over five Super Bowl-winning seasons. He was named NFL Executive of the Year in 1989. He retired from the 49ers in 1996. But when the franchise was transferred from Eddie DeBartolo Jr. to his sister, Denise, the York family wanted a steady hand like McVay's in the front office during the transition. McVay agreed to come back in 1998 and stayed for two more seasons.

Personal life and death

McVay's grandson,

Sean Sean, also spelled Seán or Séan in Irish English, is a male given name of Irish origin. It comes from the Irish versions of the Biblical Hebrew name ''Yohanan'' (), Seán (anglicized as ''Shaun/ Shawn/ Shon'') and Séan (Ulster variant; angli ...

, at the age of 30, became the youngest head coach in NFL history after he was hired by the Los Angeles Rams in 2017. Sean subsequently became the youngest head coach to win a Super Bowl when in 2022 he won Super Bowl LVI. McVay died on

October 31 Events Pre-1600 * 475 – Romulus Augustulus is proclaimed Western Roman Emperor. * 683 – During the Siege of Mecca, the Kaaba catches fire and is burned down. * 802 – Empress Irene is deposed and banished to Lesbos. Co ...

, 2022, at the age of 91.

Head coaching record

College

Professional

References

External links

Pro Football Reference profile
* {{DEFAULTSORT:McVay, John 1931 births 2022 deaths American football centers Dayton Flyers athletic directors Dayton Flyers football coaches Memphis Southmen Miami RedHawks football players Michigan State Spartans football coaches New York Giants head coaches San Francisco 49ers executives National Football League general managers Memphis Southmen coaches High school football coaches in Ohio People from Bellaire, Ohio Coaches of American football from Ohio Players of American football from Ohio