Stephanie Logue 

Staff Writer 

The NFL announced Tuesday morning that John Madden, the Hall of Fame coach-turned-broadcaster whose passionate yells mixed with straightforward explanations gave a weekly soundtrack to NFL games for three decades, died. He was 85 years old at the time. He died abruptly, according to the league, although no cause was given. Madden rose to prominence as the coach of the renegade Oakland Raiders for a decade, leading them to seven AFC title games and the Super Bowl following the 1976 season. He finished the regular season with a 103-32-7 record, and his.759 winning % is the best among NFL coaches who have coached more than 100 games. Madden also aided in the creation of the “Madden NFL” video game franchise, which has been released every year since 1988. In 2006, Madden was inducted into the NFL Hall of Fame.

“Few individuals meant as much to the growth and popularity of professional football as Coach Madden, whose impact on the game both on and off the field was immeasurable,” Hours before team owner Mark Davis lit the Al Davis Torch in honor of Madden, who was the first person to do so on Oct. 16, 2011, the Raiders issued a statement. 

“Tonight I light the torch in honor of and tribute to John Madden and Al Davis, who declared that the fire that burns the brightest in the Raiders Organization is the will to win,” Mark Davis said.

His overall aurora has made him memorable. With a charming, straightforward attitude that was refreshing in a sports world of skyrocketing salaries and prima donna stars, Madden earned a place in America’s heart. Because he was claustrophobic and had stopped flying, he traveled from game to game in his own bus. Madden used to award a “turducken,” which was a fowl stuffed inside a duck stuffed inside a turkey, to the best player in the Thanksgiving game he was calling. 

Anyone who saw Madden yell “Boom!” when breaking down a play could tell he was a huge fan of the game. Madden grew up in the California town of Daly City. In 1957 and 1958, he was a member of the offensive and defensive lines for Cal Poly, where he also obtained his bachelor’s and master’s degrees. He was named to the all-conference team and was drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles, but a knee injury put a stop to his professional football dreams. Instead, Madden went into teaching, first at Hancock Junior College in California and later at San Diego State as the defensive coordinator. In 1967, Al Davis hired him as the Raiders’ linebackers coach, and Oakland won the Super Bowl in Madden’s first season in the league. At the age of 32, he took over as head coach from John Rauch following the 1968 season, beginning a historic 10-year reign.

Madden was a longtime resident of Pleasanton, California, a Bay Area suburb.

A 90-minute documentary on his coaching and broadcasting career, “All Madden,” debuted on Fox on Christmas Day. The film featured extensive interviews that Madden sat for this year. His wife, Virginia, and sons, Joseph and Michael, also were interviewed for the documentary.

John and Virginia Madden’s 62nd wedding anniversary was two days before his death.