Lee Colson McGriff (born October 3, 1953) is an American former college and professional
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
player who was a
wide receiver in 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) for a single season in 1976. McGriff played
college football
College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States.
Unlike most ...
for the
Florida Gators football
The Florida Gators football program represents the University of Florida (UF) in American college football. Florida competes in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the Eastern Division of ...
team of the
University of Florida
The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida, traces its origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its ...
. Thereafter, he played professionally for the
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a professional American football team based in Tampa, Florida. The Buccaneers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South divisio ...
in their inaugural season in
1976
Events January
* January 3 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force.
* January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea.
* January 11 – The 1976 Phila ...
.
Early years
He was born in
Tampa, Florida
Tampa () is a city on the Gulf Coast of the United States, Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The city's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and ...
,
[National Football League, Historical Players]
Lee McGriff
Retrieved July 18, 2014. and attended
Henry B. Plant High School
H.B. Plant High School is a public high school located in the neighborhood of South Tampa in Tampa, Florida, United States. It opened in 1927 between South Himes Avenue on the east and Dale Mabry Highway on the west. The school is named in honor ...
in Tampa. He was a standout wide receiver for the Plant Panthers high school football team.
[ The List: Muschamp Didn't Walk On for Gators . . . But These Guys Did]
" GatorZone.com (October 18, 2012). Retrieved July 18, 2014.
College career
McGriff was raised in a family with a University of Florida sports tradition, but he was not offered an athletic scholarship to attend the university.
[Jack Hairston, ''Tales from the Gator Swamp'', Sports Publishing, LLC, Champaign, Illinois, pp. 71–75 (2002).] Instead, he elected to walk on to coach
Doug Dickey
Douglas Adair Dickey (born June 24, 1932) is an American former 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 ...
's
Florida Gators football
The Florida Gators football program represents the University of Florida (UF) in American college football. Florida competes in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the Eastern Division of ...
team, and played for the Gators from 1972 to 1974.
2013 Florida Football Media Guide
'', University Athletic Association, Gainesville, Florida, pp. 76, 87, 89, 94, 96, 141–42, 152–54, 165, 171, 174, 180, 189 (2013). Retrieved July 18, 2014. He earned a place in the starting line-up and led the Gators in receiving in 1973 and 1974; McGriff averaged 18.5 yards on 38 catches with five touchdowns as a junior, and 19.4 yards on an SEC-leading 36 receptions with seven touchdowns as a senior team captain.
[ He finished his three-year college career with 87 receptions for 1,551 yards and 13 touchdowns.][ Following his senior season, he was a first-team All-]Southeastern Conference
The Southeastern Conference (SEC) is an American college athletic conference whose member institutions are located primarily in the South Central and Southeastern United States. Its fourteen members include the flagship public universities of ...
(SEC) selection and an honorable mention All-American, and was the recipient of the Gators' Fergie Ferguson Award
The Forest K. Ferguson Award, commonly known as the "Fergie Ferguson Award," is presented annually to a senior member of the Florida Gators football team in memory of one of the University of Florida's greatest athletes.
Namesake
The award tak ...
.[ He graduated from the university with a bachelor's degree in journalism in 1976, and was later inducted into the ]University of Florida Athletic Hall of Fame
The University of Florida Athletic Hall of Fame includes over 300 former Florida Gators athletes who represented the University of Florida in one or more intercollegiate sports and were recognized as "Gator Greats" for their athletic excellence ...
.
Professional career
McGriff signed as an undrafted free agent with the expansion Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a professional American football team based in Tampa, Florida. The Buccaneers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South divisio ...
in 1976. He appeared in six games for the Buccaneers, and started three of them.[Pro-Football-Reference.com, Players]
Lee McGriff
Retrieved July 18, 2014.
Life after playing career
McGriff later served as an assistant coach for the Florida Gators,[ and became a partner in a successful Gainesville-based insurance agency. He has served as the color analyst for Gators football games on the Gator Sports Radio Network since 2004.
McGriff's son, ]Travis McGriff
William Travis McGriff (born June 24, 1976) is an American former college and professional football player who was a wide receiver in two different professional football leagues. McGriff played college football for the University of Florida, ...
, played for the Florida Gators from 1995 to 1998.[Andy Staples,]
McGriff Family has Big Day
" ''Orlando Sentinel'' (November 15, 1998). Retrieved July 18, 2014.
See also
* Florida Gators football, 1970–79
The Florida Gators football program represents the University of Florida (UF) in American college football. Florida competes in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the Eastern Division of ...
* History of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers
This article details the history of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers American football franchise.
Origins
Expansion of the National Football League to twenty-eight teams was an agreed part of the AFL/NFL merger of 1970 and confirmed at the end of that s ...
* List of Florida Gators in the NFL Draft
The Florida Gators football program is a college football team which represents the University of Florida. The Florida Gators compete in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), an ...
* List of Tampa Bay Buccaneers players
* List of University of Florida alumni
This list of University of Florida alumni includes current students, former students, and graduates of the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida. Honorary degree recipients can be found on the List of University of Florida honorary degree ...
* List of University of Florida Athletic Hall of Fame members
The University of Florida Athletic Hall of Fame includes over 300 former Florida Gators athletes who represented the University of Florida in one or more intercollegiate sports and were recognized as "Gator Greats" for their athletic excellence d ...
References
Bibliography
*
2013 Florida Football Media Guide
', University Athletic Association, Gainesville, Florida (2013).
* Carlson, Norm, ''University of Florida Football Vault: The History of the Florida Gators'', Whitman Publishing, LLC, Atlanta, Georgia (2007). .
* Golenbock, Peter, ''Go Gators! An Oral History of Florida's Pursuit of Gridiron Glory'', Legends Publishing, LLC, St. Petersburg, Florida (2002). .
* Hairston, Jack, ''Tales from the Gator Swamp: A Collection of the Greatest Gator Stories Ever Told'', Sports Publishing, LLC, Champaign, Illinois (2002). .
* McCarthy, Kevin M.,
Fightin' Gators: A History of University of Florida Football
', Arcadia Publishing, Mount Pleasant, South Carolina (2000). .
* McEwen, Tom, ''The Gators: A Story of Florida Football'', The Strode Publishers, Huntsville, Alabama (1974). .
* Nash, Noel, ed., ''The Gainesville Sun Presents The Greatest Moments in Florida Gators Football'', Sports Publishing, Inc., Champaign, Illinois (1998). .
* Proctor, Samuel, & Wright Langley, ''Gator History: A Pictorial History of the University of Florida'', South Star Publishing Company, Gainesville, Florida (1986). .
External links
Broadcasters
– Gator Radio Network broadcaster profiles
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mcgriff, Lee
1953 births
Living people
Players of American football from Tampa, Florida
American football wide receivers
Florida Gators football players
Tampa Bay Buccaneers players
Coaches of American football from Florida
Tampa Bay Buccaneers personnel
Florida Gators football coaches
Florida Gators football announcers
Henry B. Plant High School alumni