Marshall Ray Graham was among Morehead State’s better players before winning 252-games as a HFC
Ray Graham is among the smarter X’s and O’s coaches the KHSAA game has ever known. Graham graduated from Danville High (’71) before attending Morehead State on football scholarship and graduating in 1976. Graham had been a three-sport guy at Danville playing football, basketball, and running track. At Morehead, the 6’3,” 220-pounder would play DE and be elected a tri-captain his senior season. Graham was noted for great determination and dedication and those characteristics made him a very successful head football coach on the high school level in addition to what he accomplished as a player.
HB Lyon, Scouting Director, “KPGFootball”
Morehead, KY: There is no more profound philosopher in the KHSAA among “football people” than Marshall Ray Graham. Most of his friends call him “Ray.” His old teammates call him “Ray.”
He went by Ray Graham in the Morehead media guide. We’ll just call him Graham or Coach Graham for the purposes of this feature.
Graham once said, “Football is a great teacher of life. To win in life or football takes a team effort. We have been given a game plan. One person not executing the plan delays success.”
Graham, a very devout Christian, would agree with our next comment summoned by his very wise words. Amen!
Graham came up with something he termed “DTV-DTF.” It is an acronym for Dedicated to Fight and Devoted to Victory.
Graham came up with it his third season at Rowan County. Graham related the story to Lee Kendall, with The Cynthiana Democrat online.
Dedicated to Fight and Devoted to Victory
Ray Graham
“It was born of necessity,” Graham told Kendall. “We had a small group of linemen. I was looking to help get these undersized guys to gain some confidence. Then, as I was reading about the Israelites preparing to go to battle against their enemies, there it was; Dedicated to Fight and Devoted to Victory.”
Graham continued, “[t]hat became our mantra and it carried over for the rest of my career.” It was really more than a mantra, it was the story of Graham’s life.
Graham has always been dedicated to the fight and devoted to the victory. This was true when he was leading the Harrison County program all those years. This was true when he was on Paul Rains’ staff at Lexington Christian Academy while LCA was polishing off its 14-1 record, in 2009, and capturing the program’s only KHSAA football title.
This was true when he was heading up the program at Rowan County. It was there, in Rowan County on the campus of Morehead State University, where we were first introduced to the brilliance of Ray Graham; the multi-faceted, college, varsity athlete and football star.
If you’re in the football business any length of time, you’ll work for and with all types. The people who devote their lives to the KHSAA football industry, the people we refer to as “lifers,” will be quick to tell you this.
Make no mistake, Graham is one of us. Graham is a “lifer.”
No one knows any better than Graham that some of these people with whom you will work will be bright, even borderline geniuses. Others wouldn’t be able to find their way out of a driving rainstorm if you drew them a map.
It takes all kinds. The KHSAA certainly has them.
Graham worked for his share. Graham worked just as hard for the dunces as he did for the geniuses. Some might say the dunces required a bit more effort.
Graham had to handle the tough parents. Graham had to deal out the problem boosters. One might say he did it all.
Graham handled tough parents, problem boosters, the full gamut of industries ‘problems’
Friday Night Fletch
Over the hills and through the valleys, Graham stockpiled 252-career wins as a head coach football coach in Kentucky. That is quite a few “Dubs,” if you know what I mean.
Winning over 200-games in the KHSAA is a significant number. I liken it to 3,000 hits in baseball or a career .300 batting average. It is a threshold number which indicates excellence within the industry.
There are some programs where winning 252-games would be easier than others. Graham led programs like Rowan County and Harrison County.
These are not win-factories. LCA is a destination job now, but it was known to struggle when Paul Rains and Graham were there, in spite of a finals appearance in 2007 and the program’s lone title in 2009.
These football teams had a certain run of success with Graham around the program. It was no accident. It was because these programs were excellently coached.
These runs of success, even the successes experienced while on the staff and coaching LCA, had nothing to do with the name on the front of the jersey scaring anybody, at least not at the time Graham was there.
LCA was beatable in those days. The proof of this vulnerability, this fallibility if you will, was both ubiquitous and omnipresent.
Needless to say Rowan County and Harrison County were just as beatable if not more so. You didn’t need us to tell you that.
All the while, at all the stops, the programs experienced success because of Graham. There was no success in spite of Graham. It was always because. In the end, that is the mark of a great coach.
Graham waded through all manner of foolishness and was always able, somehow, to give his teams, his parents, his administration, his school system his very best. Graham was dedicated to service. Graham’s players reaped the benefit of his devotion to them, to his faith, to the sport he had devoted a lifetime promoting and perpetuating.
Graham gave his teams, parents, administration, and school system everything he had on every snap, both figuratively and literally
Friday Night Fletch
A well traveled and experienced coach, who much prefers avoiding attention or limelight, talked with KPGFootball about Graham but only on the condition he not be referenced or quoted in the piece. He told KPGFootball, “Ray Graham took five and five teams and made them nine and two. Graham took two and eight teams and made them seven and four.”
This coach continued, “Graham built state contenders only to have to turn around and lead his men through season altering tragedies. Graham didn’t just preach DTF-DTV, he showed his players what it meant and how to live it.”
“Graham was their example. Graham was the template.”
This coach concluded, “Graham was a great player. He has been an even better coach.”
Graham graduated from Danville High School in 1971. Graham had been a three-sport star athlete playing football, basketball, and running track.
At Danville, Graham would play football for Steele Harmon. Harmon had been a standout, five-letter athlete for Centre College, and a Colonel college legend, before a career in coaching.
Harmon, a versatile athlete (like Ray Graham), excelled in football, basketball, track, tennis, and baseball for the Colonels, playing on Centre’s undefeated 1955 football team. The point we are striving to make is that roots planted in good soil bear abundant fruit.
Graham was exposed to outstanding coaching coming up the football ranks. The football knowledge which has come from Graham, over the course of his coaching tenure, has been as outstanding as the knowledge which was first implanted into Graham as a prep and college player.
Those are the origins from whence legends spring. That is how legendary coaches are made.
Yes, Coach Graham, football is (in fact) a great teacher in life. So are men like you.
We thank God for you. Amen, once again.
This is Friday Night Fletch, reporting for KPGFootball, reminding you to PLAY THROUGH THE WHISTLE!
If you enjoyed this article and wish to gain full-access to the site, then subscribe monthly to Kentucky Prep Gridiron by following the prompts!
© The information contained on this site is the copyrighted intellectual property of KPGFootball. Any unauthorized dissemination of this material without the author’s express written consent is strictly prohibited!
Leave a Reply