Born February 3, 1965, Nashville’s Chris Gaines, like his father and brothers, attended Dupont High School. He then went on to be a star football player at Vanderbilt. As linebacker, Gaines was named to the prestigious Kodak Coaches’ 1987 All-America team. That same season, he set an SEC record with 214 tackles, an average of 19.5 per game. Chris also set a Vanderbilt record with an amazing thirty-seven tackles in the Tulane contest. He was twice named Southeast Co-Lineman of the Week by the Associated Press – first after the Memphis State game, and then again after the Tulane game. Elected team captain, Gaines was also named First Team All-SEC by both the AP and UPI. Following his storybook senior season, he was picked to play in the prestigious Annual Blue/Gray Classic in Montgomery on Christmas Day, where he was named the game’s Most Valuable Player. A proud collegiate career behind him, Chris went on to play in the NFL for Phoenix, Miami, and Tampa Bay before heading north to join the CFL’s Toronto Argonauts. There, he set the Argos’ single-season record for tackles with 117 in 1990 and helped lead Toronto to the Grey Cup championship in 1991. Finally packing away his pads and helmet, Gaines returned to Nashville in 1995 to become strength and conditioning coach for the Commodores and was promoted to VU linebacker coach in 1997. He remains close to the Vanderbilt program today.
