Robert Cade
#142157 Most Popular
About
Professor of renal medicine who developed the sports drink Gatorade in 1965 for the Florida Gators football team. In addition to Gatorade, he invented the earliest football helmets that dissipate the energy from hits, protecting players.
Before Fame
He was working as a researcher at the University of Florida when the school's football coach asked him to help his team stay energized on hot days, when water didn't help.
Trivia
He used the money he made from Gatorade to create numerous academic scholarships and he donated a lot to the science departments at the University of Florida.
Family Life
He had four daughters and two sons with wife Mary Strasburger.
Associated With
The ritual dumping of his drink on the coach started with the Bill Parcells-era New York Giants, when the beat the Washington Redskins in the Super Bowl in 1985.
