Sam Wyche was born and played his high school ball in Atlanta, Georgia.  He went on to become known as one of the best offensive minds in football. He introduced the no-huddle offense to the NFL and led the Cincinnati Bengals to Super Bowl XXIII as the AFC division Champions. Wyche’s 64 wins with the Bengals were the most ever by a coach in their franchise history. From 1963 to 1965, he played college football at Furman University in Greenville, SC as a quarterback.  

In 1967, he spent a year as an assistant coach for the University of South Carolina before going undrafted in the NFL in 1968. He ended up playing 9 NFL seasons with the Cincinatti Bengals, Washington Redskins, Detroit Lions, and St. Louis Cardinals.  Then after his playing career, he became an assistant coach for the San Francisco 49ers where he coached Joe Montana to his first Super Bowl victory as QB coach under legend, Bill Walsh. Notably, he designed the route that led to “the Catch.”

He was with San Francisco from 1979-1982. He was named the head coach for Indiana in 1983. In 1984-1991 he went back to the NFL as the head coach for the Cincinnati Bengals.  After his  stint with the Bengals he was hired as the head coach for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers from 1992-1994. In 2004 and 2005 he was the quarterback coach for the Buffalo Bills. 

After leaving the NFL he has spent time broadcasting, public speaking, assisting Pickens High School in South Carolina,  helping create the first two collegiate all-star games in South Carolina history, and promote and raise money for the Pickens County Meals on Wheels Program.  In 2016, Coach Wyche had heart failure and received a transplant that saved his life.  Since then he has been an advocate for “Donate Life”, a program that encourages those to be a donor.

On January 2, 2020, Coach Wyche passed away from complications of cancer. The SCFHOF posthumously honored Coach Wyche in 2021 with the 2020 Humanitarian of the Year Award for his lifetime dedication to his community, the South Carolina Football Hall of Fame, and Donate Life.