| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born: | (1930-11-08)November 8, 1930 Passaic, New Jersey, U.S. |
| Died: | December 15, 1987(1987-12-15) (aged 57) Santa Ana, California, U.S. |
| Career information | |
| High school: | Clifton (NJ) |
| College: | Army,Mississippi State |
| Position: | Guard |
| Career history | |
As a coach: | |
| |
As an administrator: | |
| |
| Head coaching record | |
| Regular season: | 44–41–0 (.518) |
| Postseason: | 3–3 (.500) |
| Career: | 47–44–0 (.516) |
| Coaching profile atPro Football Reference | |
Ray Malavasi (/mɑːlɑːˈveɪsiː/mah-lah-VAY-see;[1] November 8, 1930 – December 15, 1987) was anAmerican football coach who served as head coach of two professional teams: theDenver Broncos andLos Angeles Rams.
Born inPassaic,New Jersey,[2] Malavasi grew up in neighboringClifton and graduated fromClifton High School in 1948.
Malavasi then entered theU.S. Military Academy atWest Point, starting at offensive guard for theCadet football team. Under head coachEarl Blaik and line coachVince Lombardi, Malavasi playedtwo years, with Blaik rating him as the greatest line prospect during his tenure at the academy. That potential disappeared when Malavasi was one of 90 cadets who left in the wake of acheating scandal in August 1951.[3]
Malavasi left to attendMississippi State University, earning a degree in engineering while serving as an assistant under head coachMurray Warmath in1952 and also receiving an Army ROTC commission. In 1953, he tried out and was released by the NFL'sPhiladelphia Eagles, then served as line coach with theFort Belvoir army unit for two years beginning in 1954.
After his military service, Malavasi accepted an assistant's role with theUniversity of Minnesota in1956, also under Warmath, spending two seasons with the Golden Gophers. He took a similar position withMemphis State University in 1958. Three years in Tennessee led to a single year with theWake Forest University in1961.
Malavasi gained his first position in professional football in1962 as the personnel director of theAmerican Football League'sDenver Broncos.
In1963, Malavasi also took on the duties of defensive line coach for the Broncos, and shifted to the offensive line prior to the start of the1966 season. After Denver dropped their first two games, head coachMac Speedie abruptly resigned,[4] and Malavasi became the interim head coach for the final twelve games.[5] The Broncos managed just four wins and ownership then hiredLou Saban as head coach and general manager for1967.[6][7][8]
For the next two years, Malavasi coached on the defensive side of the ball with theCanadian Football League'sHamilton Tiger-Cats under head coachesRalph Sazio andJoe Restic.
Malavasi accepted the defensive line assistant's position with theBuffalo Bills on February 3,1969 and stayed fortwo seasons under head coachJohn Rauch.
Malavasi left to work for theOakland Raiders in1971 under head coachJohn Madden, but resigned after justtwo years, citing the frustration with the team keeping him from advancing his career.
Malavasi's resignation caused controversy when Madden accused another team of tampering with Malavasi's services. While he denied the charges, Malavasi was hired on June 5, 1973, as a defensive assistant with theLos Angeles Rams under new head coachChuck Knox. Over the next five years, Malavasi rose todefensive coordinator, and was under consideration for head coaching positions with both the Eagles andChicago Bears. He also was looked at as head coach for the Rams after the departure of Knox forBuffalo following the1977 season, but stayed as defensive coordinator underGeorge Allen in1978.
However, after just two exhibition games, Allen was fired by ownerCarroll Rosenbloom and Malavasi was promoted to head coach,[9][10][11] He led the team to their sixth straightNFC West title with 12–4 record, reaching theNFC Championship game. Thefollowing year, the team barely finished above .500 with a 9–7 mark, but the NFC West was so weak that the Rams won their seventh straight division title. In theplayoffs, the Rams upset theCowboys, then shut down the upstartTampa Bay Buccaneers 9–0 in the conference title game to give the franchise its first Super Bowl berth ever, nearly a home game at theRose Bowl inPasadena. Entering the fourth quarter ofSuper Bowl XIV with a two-point lead over the heavily favoredPittsburgh Steelers, the Rams' upset bid came up short when they allowed two touchdowns and fell 31–19.[12]
An 11–5 mark in1980 was a two-game improvement over1979, but it was only good enough for second place behind theAtlanta Falcons in the NFC West, and the Rams fell in thewild-card round to theCowboys. Thefollowing year, the rise of theSan Francisco 49ers ended the Rams' reign and saddled them with a 6–10 record. Following a 2–7 mark during the strike-shortened1982 season, the worst record in the 14-team NFC, Malavasi was dismissed on January 4, 1983.[13][14]
In 1983, Malavasi worked as acolor commentator for NFL games onMutual radio. He also served as a consultant and unofficial spokesman for the proposedInternational Football League, a league that served the dual purpose of introducing professional football abroad as well as serving as an antagonist to theUnited States Football League (Malavasi vowed that the league would hold its draft and opening kickoff one week before the USFL's respective dates, no matter what the USFL did). The IFL folded without any teams organizing; after the league's failure, Malavasi resurfaced as an assistant with the USFL'sOakland Invaders in early 1984. He left that position just after the start of the season to become defensive coordinator of the league'sLos Angeles Express, but the financial woes of the team ended his brief tenure in the final weeks of the season.
Malavasi was never again on the sidelines for an NFL team, but he did coach the first everAustraliannational American football team in 1987. The Australian Kookaburras did a week-long training camp atDominguez Hills in southern California before heading off for a tour ofEurope, where they played three games. Malavasi was assisted with the team by Johnny Johnson.
Less than two months after returning from the tour with the Australian team, Malavasi died at age 57 of a suddenheart attack on December 15, 1987,[15][16] He died at Western Medical Center inSanta Ana,[15] and was buried at Pacific View Memorial Park inCorona del Mar.
While the Rams' head coach, he appeared on an episode ofFantasy Island as himself in March 1979, along with several of his players.
During the1981 season, Malavasi was set to do a weekly morning call-in segment with disc jockeyRobert W. Morgan on the Rams' flagship stationKMPC 710 AM. But while on standby, Malavasi fell asleep and could be heard snoring as Morgan proceeded in vain to question the Rams coach. The attempted radio interview later was widely circulated.[17]
| Team | Year | Regular Season | Post Season | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Won | Lost | Ties | Win % | Finish | Won | Lost | Win % | Result | ||
| DEN | 1966 | 4 | 8 | 0 | .333 | 4th in AFL West Division | – | – | – | – |
| DEN Total | 4 | 8 | 0 | .333 | – | – | – | – | ||
| AFL Total | 4 | 8 | 0 | .333 | – | – | – | – | ||
| LA | 1978 | 12 | 4 | 0 | .750 | 1st in NFC West | 1 | 1 | .500 | Lost toDallas Cowboys inNFC Championship |
| LA | 1979 | 9 | 7 | 0 | .563 | 1st in NFC West | 2 | 1 | .667 | Lost toPittsburgh Steelers inSuper Bowl XIV |
| LA | 1980 | 11 | 5 | 0 | .688 | 2nd in NFC West | 0 | 1 | .000 | Lost toDallas Cowboys inWild Card Game |
| LA | 1981 | 6 | 10 | 0 | .375 | 3rd in NFC West | – | – | – | – |
| LA | 1982 | 2 | 7 | 0 | .222 | 4th in NFC West | – | – | – | – |
| LA Total | 40 | 33 | 0 | .548 | 3 | 3 | .500 | – | ||
| NFL Total[18] | 40 | 33 | 0 | .548 | 3 | 3 | .500 | – | ||
| Total | 44 | 41 | 0 | .518 | 3 | 3 | .500 | – | ||