The sports world is saying goodbye to a legend. Don Shula, the former coach of the Miami Dolphins, passed away yesterday of natural causes at the age of 90, leaving a legacy that included running a team that recorded the only perfect season in the history of the NFL. Shula had retired from football in 1995, completing a run in football that spanned four decades, both as a player and a coach. By the time he left the game, his record as a head coach was 347-173-6, making him the winningest head coach ever in the NFL.
Shula began his career as a head coach with the then-Baltimore Colts, the same team where he had starred as a player years earlier. He was 33 at the time and led the team to one Super Bowl appearance. When he was later recruited by the Dolphins, he found his permanent home, and gave the team two consecutive Super Bowl wins – in 1972 and ’73 – and a total of five Super Bowl appearances. The 1972 season will always be the most memorable, as it was this year that he took the Dolphins to an undefeated record from start to finish, a feat that has never been reproduced by any team. In the 33 years he found himself calling the shots, only two ended with losing records.
Shula received a lot of praise over the years and was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1997. He was recognized as the AP NFL Coach of the Year four times, and Sports Illustrated named him the Sportsman of the Year once, making him the only pro coach to ever have received the honor. Shula was also presented with the “Lombardi Award of Excellence” in 1999 and the Ellis Island Medal of Honor in 2011.
The Dolphins issued a statement yesterday after news of his passing started to hit the press. The team said in a Twitter post, “Don Shula was the patriarch of the Miami Dolphins for 50 years. He brought the winning edge to our franchise and put the Dolphins and the city of Miami in the national sports scene. Our deepest thoughts and prayers go out to Mary Anne along with his children, Dave, Donna, Sharon, Anne and Mike.”
Shula was born in Grand River, Ohio on January 4, 1930 to a father who had immigrated from Hungary and a mother of Hungarian-American descent. He was forbidden from playing football after cutting his nose in a pick-up game, but forged a permission slip to be able to play for his high school. Shula would prove to be a strong defensive player and was able to attend John Carroll University on a partial, then full scholarship. The Cleveland Browns drafted him in 1951, and he was subsequently traded to the Colts in 1953. He started his coaching career as a backs coach before becoming head coach of the Colts in 1963. He leaves behind his second wife, Mary Anne, eight children, 16 grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.
