Former Vikings head coach Bud Grant has died at the age of 95, Minnesota announced on Saturday.
Grant was a multi-sport athlete at the University of Minnesota, playing football, basketball and baseball for the Gophers. He was drafted by both the NBA and NFL, briefly playing for the Minneapolis Lakers after college and winning an NBA title, before transitioning full time to football with the Eagles, where he played two years as a defensive end and wide receiver.
After a brief stint with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers of the CFL as a player, Grant took over as Winnepeg’s head coach in 1957. He spent ten years as the Blue Hens’ coach, winning four Grey Cups in that span, before Minnesota hired him as its head coach in 1967.
Grant made his name with the Vikings, leading the team for 18 years from 1967 to ’83, and one final season in ’85. Minnesota won 11 NFL/NFC Central titles under Grant, making the Super Bowl four times. The Vikings won NFL Championship in 1969, the year before the AFL and NFL merged, but fell in Super Bowl IV to the AFL’s Chiefs. In total, Grant had a 158-96-5 record as Minnesota’s coach, placing him at No. 19 on the NFL’s all-time wins list.
Grant was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame as part of the Class of 1994.
