ATLANTA — Pepper Rodgers has died at the age of 88. His alma mater, Georgia Tech, announced Rodgers' death.
He was a colorful personality who helped the Yellow Jackets to a 12-0 season as a player in 1952. He is even better known for his coaching career, with included stints with Kansas, UCLA and Georgia Tech, as well as the United States Football League and the Canadian Football League.
As a quarterback and kicker, Rodgers was part of Georgia Tech team that went 32-2-3, claimed two Southeastern Conference championships and won three major bowl games during his three years on the varsity.
Rodgers joined the Jayhawks in 1967, where he led Kansas to a 5-5 record including a 5-2 record in the Big Eight, to tie for second in the conference. In his second year at the helm in 1968, he led KU to a 9-2 overall record and a share of the Big Eight Conference title. In the same season, he led KU to its second Orange Bowl appearance, where they fell to the No. 3 Penn State Nittany Lions, 14-15, finishing the season with a No. 6 national ranking.
In his four seasons as the head coach at Kansas, Rodgers led the Jayhawks to a 20-22 overall record, while being named Big Eight Coach of the Year twice.
