Sam Graddy

Samuel Louis ("Sam") Graddy III (born February 10, 1964) is a former American athlete and American football player, winner of gold medal in 4x100 m relay at the 1984 Summer Olympics.

Born in Gaffney, South Carolina, Sam Graddy was second in 100 m and was a member of gold medal winning American 4x100 m relay team at the 1983 Pan American Games.

In 1984, Graddy won the US National championships in 100 m and as a University of Tennessee at Knoxville student, won the NCAA 100 m title.

At the Los Angeles Olympics, Graddy was second behind Carl Lewis in 100 m and ran the first leg in the American 4x100 m relay team, which won the gold medal with a new world record of 37.83.

After graduating from university, Graddy played professional football for the Denver Broncos (seasons 1987 and 1988) and for the Los Angeles Raiders from 1990 to 1992. During his Raider career Graddy was blasted by Raider fans for dropping too many passes and since the Raider coaches also realized this his playing time was reduced. In 1991 he scored on a 80 yard touchdown pass against the Houston Oilers.