COLUMBIA, S.C. — Before his career in the NFL, Dan Reeves was a South Carolina quarterback from 1962-1964 when he played for head coach Marvin Bass. In 1977, Reeves was inducted into the USC Athletics Hall of Fame.
Reeves passed away the morning of Jan. 1 at the age of 77. South Carolina head football coach Shane Beamer took to social media to pay his respects to a Gamecock legend who achieved great heights in the NFL.
Reeves spent all eight years of his NFL playing career with Dallas where he rushed for 1,990 yards and 25 touchdowns while also catching 129 passes for 1,693 yards and 17 touchdowns. He was part of the Cowboys’ first Super Bowl winning team in 1971, as Dallas defeated Don Shula and the Miami Dolphins in Super Bowl VI. After his playing career ended, Reeves became an assistant under Tom Landry and was the offensive coordinator for the Cowboys during their Super Bowl winning season of 1977.
In 1981, his NFL head coaching career began as he was hired by Denver. He would spend 23 seasons as an NFL head coach with the Broncos, Giants and Falcons. He went to three Super Bowls with the Broncos and then in 1998, in his second season as the head coach of the Falcons, he led that franchise to its first NFC Championship. But they would lose to his former quarterback John Elway and the Broncos in Super Bowl XXXIII.
Reeves made a few stops in Columbia over the years including 2013 when he was a guest at the Fellowship of Christian Athletes fall dinner where he gave his thoughts on Gamecock quarterback Connor Shaw. Reeves says he was very impressed with the way Shaw battled through injuries during that senior season.