Don Shula

Don Shula in July 2009.
No. 96, 44, 25, 26
Head Coach Cornerback
Personal information
Date of birth: (1930-01-04) January 4, 1930 (age 82)
Place of birth: Grand River, Ohio
Career information
College: John Carroll
NFL Draft: 1951 / Round: 9 / Pick: 110
Debuted in 1951 for the Cleveland Browns
Last played in 1957 for the Washington Redskins
Made coaching debut in 1960 for the Detroit Lions
Last coached in 1995 for the Miami Dolphins
Career history
As Player: Cleveland Browns (1951–1952) Baltimore Colts (1953–1956) Washington Redskins (1957) As coach: Detroit Lions (1960–1962) (Defensive coordinator) Baltimore Colts (1963–1969) (Head coach) Miami Dolphins (1970–1995) (Head coach)
Career highlights and awards
2× Super Bowl champion (VII, VIII) 5× AFC Championship winner (1971, 1972, 1973, 1982, 1984) 1× NFL Championship winner (1968) 14× Division title winner Most regular-season wins (328) Most Super Bowl appearance as Head coach (6) 328–156–6 (Regular season) 19–17 (Post season) 347–173–6 (Overall) 4× NFL Coach of the Year NFL 1970s All-Decade Team
Career NFL statistics
Win-Loss Record 328–156–6 Winning % .678 Games 490 Stats at NFL.com
Coaching stats at pro-football-reference.com
Pro Football Hall of Fame

Donald Francis "Don" Shula (born January 4, 1930) is a former American football cornerback and coach.

He is best known as coach of the Miami Dolphins, the team he led to two Super Bowl victories, and to the National Football League's only perfect season. Shula was named 1993 Sportsman of the Year by Sports Illustrated. He currently holds the NFL record for most career wins with 347. Shula only had two losing seasons in his 36-year career of coaching in the NFL. He has been head coach for a record six Super Bowls. In his first, he set the record for the longest period to be shut out (not scoring until 3:19 remaining). His next Super Bowl he set the record for the lowest points by any team (with only one field goal). The very next year he turned that all around during his perfect season, breaking his record of longest period with a shut out, this time with him on the winning side (not giving up any points until 2:07 remaining). As of 2012, Shula's perfect NFL season remains unmatched, and his three Super Bowl records and total NFL wins remain unbroken.

Biography[link]

Personal life[link]

Born in Grand River, Ohio, he has Hungarian origins, Shula grew up in suburban Cleveland, attended St. Mary's and graduated from Harvey High School in Painesville, and then John Carroll University. He played football at both schools, but never started. He earned a Master of Arts degree in Physical Education from Case Western Reserve University in 1954.^[1]

Playing career[link]

In 1951, Shula signed with the Cleveland Browns as a defensive back, though he would later rarely see time on the field. On March 26, 1953, he was traded to the Baltimore Colts in what was, at that time, the largest NFL player trade ever made, involving 15 players. The Colts traded T Mike McCormack, DT Don Colo, LB Tom Catlin, DB John Petitbon, and G Herschell Forester to the Browns for Shula, DB Bert Rechichar, DB Carl Taseff, LB Ed Sharkey, E Gern Nagler, QB Harry Agganis, T Dick Batten, T Stu Sheets, G Art Spinney, and G Elmer Willhoite. Shula and Taseff were teammates at John Carroll, with the Browns and with the Colts.

Shula played with Baltimore for four seasons before finishing his playing career for one season with the Washington Redskins. In his seven NFL seasons, Shula played in 73 games, intercepted 21 passes and also recovered four fumbles.

Early coaching career[link]

Shula's first coaching position was as a defensive backs coach at the University of Virginia in 1958 where he coached under head coach Dick Voris. He stayed for one season before moving on to the same position at the University of Kentucky in 1959 where he coached under head coach Blanton Collier. In 1960, Shula entered the NFL as defensive coordinator of the Detroit Lions.

Shula played under both Paul Brown and Weeb Ewbank, a Brown disciple, who is also in the Hall of Fame.

Head coaching career[link]

Baltimore Colts[link]

1963–1969[link]

After Ewbank left the Baltimore Colts to coach the New York Jets in 1963, Shula was hired by Colts' owner Carroll Rosenbloom to coach Baltimore. Shula's hiring was controversial because he was thought to be too young at only age 33.

Shula took the controls and led the Colts to an 8–6 record in 1963. He was successful, compiling a 71–23–4 record in seven seasons with Baltimore, but he was just 2–3 in the postseason, including two losses in championship games in which the Colts were heavy favorites, the 1964 NFL championship game won by the Browns 27–0 and Super Bowl III, the game in which Joe Namath of the New York Jets guaranteed and delivered a victory.

The 1965 team lost a special tie-breaker playoff game in overtime against the Green Bay Packers while using running back Tom Matte at quarterback because of injuries to Johnny Unitas and his backups. The 1967 team failed to make the playoffs despite a regular season record of 11–1–2, losing the Coastal Division on a tiebreaker due to an 0–1–1 record vs. the Los Angeles Rams. The Colts' only loss was a 34–10 setback to the Rams at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on the final Sunday of the season.