Alonzo Smith "Jake" Gaither (April 11, 1903 – February 18, 1994) was an American college football coach and athletics administrator.

He served as the head football coach at Florida A&M University (FAMU) for 25 years, from 1945 to 1969, compiling a record of 204–36–4.

Gaither went to work as an assistant to head coach William M. Bell at Florida A&M College for Negroes (as it was called then) in 1937.

[1][2] The FAMC Rattlers had an undefeated (8–0) season that year, and won their first black college football national championship.

He built up an effective recruiting network; in the days of Jim Crow, he had the pick of every good black high school player in Florida.

After retiring, he told his biographer, "I run into so many people who have no deep sense of morals—people who got a price tag on them, who'd sell their soul.

He recruited major college coaches, including Paul "Bear" Bryant, Frank Broyles, Darrell Royal, Woody Hayes and Adolph Rupp, among others, to staff the clinics.

Thirty-six players from Gaither's teams were All-Americans, and 42 went on to play in the National Football League (NFL).