Floyd Reese (August 8, 1948 – August 21, 2021) was an American professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

coach and executive in the

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(NFL). From 1994 to 2006, he held the position of general manager of the

Tennessee Titans The Tennessee Titans are a professional American football team based in Nashville, Tennessee. The Titans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. They play the ...

. Reese then served as an analyst on

ESPN ESPN (an initialism of their original name, which was the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by the Walt Disney Company (80% and operational control) and Hearst Commu ...

's NFL Live, and as a writer on

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before joining the

New England Patriots The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. The Patriots compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The Pa ...

as a senior football advisor. As a general manager, Reese drafted three NFL Rookie of the Year Award winners among his 11 first round draft choices: running back

Eddie George Edward Nathan George Jr. (born September 24, 1973) is an American college American football, football coach and former running back who is the head football coach at Bowling Green Falcons football, Bowling Green State University. He previously ...

1996 1996 was designated as: * International Year for the Eradication of Poverty Events January * January 8 – A Zairean cargo plane crashes into a crowded market in the center of the capital city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo ...

, defensive end Jevon Kearse in

1999 1999 was designated as the International Year of Older Persons. Events January * January 1 – The euro currency is established and the European Central Bank assumes its full powers. * January 3 – The Mars Polar Lander is launc ...

, and quarterback

Vince Young Vincent Paul Young Jr. (born May 18, 1983) is an American former professional football player who was a quarterback for six seasons in the National Football League (NFL). Young was selected by the Tennessee Titans as the third overall pick in th ...

2006 2006 was designated as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification. Events January * January 1– 4 – Russia temporarily cuts shipment of natural gas to Ukraine during a price dispute. * January 12 – A stampede during t ...

. Reese also drafted NFL co-MVP quarterback Steve McNair.

College career

Reese was a three-year letterman and three-year starter (making 28 of 30 starts) for the

University of California, Los Angeles The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school the ...

. He was voted UCLA rookie of the year in 1967. Reese was part of a Bruins defense that gave up only 103 points (ninth best in school history) and posted an 8-1-1 record his senior year. Reese was an

All-America The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

n in 1969. He was voted the team co-MVP in 1969 (along with quarterback Dennis Dummit) making him the only defensive player ever to win the award. Reese was also one of UCLA's tri-captains as well as All-Pac-8. He was voted to the ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...

'' All-Time UCLA team in 1970. Reese played in the Hula Bowl after his senior season and was voted the game's outstanding lineman.

Playing career

Reese played one season in the

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; , LCF) is a Professional gridiron football, professional Canadian football league in Canada. It comprises nine teams divided into two divisions, with four teams in the East Division (CFL), East Division and f ...

(1970) for the

Montreal Alouettes The Montreal Alouettes (Canadian French, French: ''Les Alouettes de Montréal'') are a professional Canadian football team based in Montreal, Quebec. Founded in 1946, the team has disbanded twice and been re-established thrice. The Alouettes compe ...

. He signed with the

Toronto Argonauts The Toronto Argonauts (officially the Toronto Argonaut Football Club and colloquially known as the Argos) are a professional Canadian football team based in Toronto, Ontario. The Argonauts compete in the East Division (CFL), East Division of t ...

in 1971 but did not play and decided to move into coaching that same year.

Professional career

Coaching

Reese was an assistant coach at UCLA from 1971 to 1973 and with

Georgia Tech The Georgia Institute of Technology (commonly referred to as Georgia Tech, GT, and simply Tech or the Institute) is a public research university and institute of technology in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. Established in 1885, it has the lar ...

in 1974. He was in charge of the

Detroit Lions The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit. The Lions compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. The team plays their home game ...

' strength and conditioning with head coaches Rick Forzano and Tommy Hudspeth from 1975 until the latter's dismissal with his entire staff on January 9, 1978. He moved to the

San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners and nicknamed the 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 ...

as strength and conditioning coach in 1978. Reese became the

Minnesota Vikings The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. The Vikings compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. Founded in 1960 as ...

' linebacker coach and special teams from 1979 though 1983 and was the Vikings' defensive coordinator in 1984. He returned to the post of linebacker coach in 1985. The next season, Reese began a four-year stint as linebacker coach for the

Houston Oilers The Houston Oilers were a professional American football team that played in Houston, Texas, from its founding in 1960 Houston Oilers season, 1960 to 1996 Houston Oilers season, 1996. The Houston Oilers began play as a charter member of the Ame ...

NFL executive

In 1990, Reese was promoted to the position of assistant general manager for the Oilers following an offer from

Jerry Glanville Jerry Michael Glanville (born October 14, 1941) is an American football coach. He is the defensive coordinator for Northwestern Oklahoma State University, a position he has held since 2024. Prior to that, was most recently the head coach of the ...

, then head coach of the

Atlanta Falcons The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. The Falcons were founded o ...

, to join the Falcons as assistant head coach.

Bud Adams Kenneth Stanley "Bud" Adams Jr. (January 3, 1923 – October 21, 2013) was an American businessman who was the founder and owner of the Houston Oilers of the American Football League (AFL), of which he was also a co-founder. The franchise eve ...

wanted to keep Reese with the Oilers so he offered Reese the position of assistant general manager and the opportunity to one day replace

Mike Holovak Michael Joseph Holovak (September 19, 1919 – January 27, 2008) was an American football player, coach, and executive. He played college football at Boston College, where he was an All-American at fullback in 1942. Holovak was the fifth over ...

, then-Oilers general manager. Reese held that position until 1993. In 1994, Reese was promoted to executive vice president and general manager, where he stayed while the Oilers moved to

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...

, first as the Tennessee Oilers, then as the Tennessee Titans. He added the role of director of football operations in 2001. After disputes with Adams and coach Jeff Fisher about the direction of the team (Fisher wanted more control in drafts), and realizing that Adams was not likely to offer him a new contract, Reese resigned his position with the Titans following the 2006 season, despite amassing the most wins (111) of any Oilers/Titans general manager. Following his departure from the Titans, Reese joined

as an NFL analyst and writer for

. On January 27, 2009, Reese was hired by the

as a senior football advisor following Patriots vice president of player personnel Scott Pioli leaving to become general manager of the

Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) West division. Established in 1959 ...

. Following the

2009 2009 was designated as the International Year of Astronomy by the United Nations to coincide with the 400th anniversary of Galileo Galilei's first known astronomical studies with a telescope and the publication of Astronomia Nova by Joha ...

season, Reese was a finalist for the

Seattle Seahawks The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West division. The club entered the NFL a ...

general manager position, one that was eventually filled by John Schneider. Reese left the Patriots after the 2012 season.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Reese, Floyd 1948 births 2021 deaths American football defensive linemen American strength and conditioning coaches Detroit Lions coaches ESPN people Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets football coaches Houston Oilers coaches Houston Oilers executives Minnesota Vikings coaches Montreal Alouettes players New England Patriots executives San Francisco 49ers coaches Tennessee Oilers executives Tennessee Titans executives UCLA Bruins football coaches UCLA Bruins football players NFL general managers