What started in Gainesville over 50 years ago has evolved into one of America’s iconic brands.
Everyone knows the sports drink, Gatorade. But not as many people know its origins. For that, let’s go all the way back to 1965.
Dr. Robert Cade and a team of scientists were employed by the University of Florida College of Medicine. One day Cade and his team were approached by the Gators’ head football coach Ray Graves. Graves told them that players weren’t playing to their full potential, tiring out during the hot Florida days. Water wasn’t hydrating them sufficiently, so Cade and fellow scientists–Dana Shires, Harry James Free, and Alejandro de Quesada–went to work to come up with a solution.
Courtesy: Gainesville.com
Early versions of the drink consisted of water, sodium, sugar, potassium, phosphate, and lemon juice-concoction that ended up tasting like a lemon drink. Ten players were chosen to test the drink throughout the 1965 football season.
The findings were encouraging. Players began performing better, especially during the second half of games. Star quarterback Steve Spurrier said, “I don’t have an answer for whether the Gatorade helped us be a better second-half team…. Who knows”?
But Gatorade got full credit for the Gators winning the 1967 Orange Bowl. When the press asked Georgia Tech coach Bobby Dodd why his team lost he replied: “We didn’t have Gatorade.”
Dr. Robert Cade and his staff named the product “Gatorade” in honor of Gator football. Then, shortly after the 1969 Orange Bowl, Cade entered into an agreement for the U.S. Rights to Gatorade, which was sold to the Stokely Van Camp, Inc. That same year the National Football League entered into a licensing agreement making Gatorade its official sports drink.
Other sports followed suit and, over time, Gatorade has become a sports drink favorite among athletes, coaches, and trainers.
What started in Gainesville over 50 years ago has evolved into one of America’s iconic brands.
