2007 Hall of Fame Inductee
The head coach at UCLA from 1947-1964 (Asst. Coach 1929-1944), Drake led the Bruins to the 1956 NCAA outdoor team title. During his career, seven of his athletes won nine NCAA individual titles and 12 national AAU crowns. Named the NCAA Track & Field Coach of the Year in 1956, Drake was the coach of National Track & Field Hall of Famer Rafer Johnson, who won the gold medal in the decathlon at the 1960 Olympic Games in Rome. Johnson barely edged out Bruin teammate and fellow Drake protégé C.K Yang, who captured the silver medal in one of the most dramatic duels in Olympic history. Other Olympians coached by Drake include gold medalist Cy Young (1952), bronze medalists Craig Dixon ('48) and George Roubanis ('56), as well as George Stanich ('48), George Brown ('52), and Nagalingam Ethirveerasingham ('56). In 1973, the UCLA track stadium was named in his honor, and in 1984, he was inducted into the UCLA Athletic Hall of Fame as a charter member. Drake died December 23, 1985.