RIP Coach Shula.....

[LARams_1963]

A legend has passed......Winningest coach in history, not too mention his '72 team!

Dolphins Hall of Fame coach Shula dies at 90

Don Shula, the NFL's winningest coach who led the Dolphins to the league's only undefeated season, died Monday at the age of 90.

www.espn.com

Dolphins Hall of Fame coach Don Shula dies at 90
7:25 AM PT

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Don Shula, the NFL's most winningest coach who led the Miami Dolphins to the league's only undefeated season, died Monday at the age of 90.
The Dolphins issued a statement saying that Shula died "peacefully at his home."
"Don Shula was the patriarch of the Miami Dolphins for 50 years," it read. "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 won an NFL-record 347 games (including playoffs). He coached the Dolphins (17-0) to the league's only undefeated season in 1972, culminating in a 14-7 victory over the Washington Redskins in Super Bowl VII.
The Dolphins repeated as champions the next season, beating the Minnesota Vikings 24-7 in Super Bowl VIII, the third straight title game had Miami played in; the Dolphins lost 24-3 to the Dallas Cowboys in Super Bowl VI.
In all, Shula guided the Dolphins to five Super Bowls, including losses to the Redskins (27-17 in Super Bowl XVII) and San Francisco 49ers (38-16 in Super Bowl XIX).
Before coming to Miami, Shula coached the Baltimore Colts, who made him the then-youngest NFL coach when they hired him at age 33. He led the Colts to Super Bowl III, the first title game to have "Super Bowl" in its name. Baltimore lost 16-7 to quarterback Joe Namath and New York Jets, who became the first AFL team to win an NFL championship.
By the time he resigned as Dolphins coach after the 1995 season, Shula had been an NFL head coach for 33 seasons (26 with Miami). Only two of his Dolphins teams finished below .500 during those 26 seasons. He finished with an overall coaching record of 347-173-6 (73-26-4 with Baltimore).
Shula was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1997. He and George Halas are the only coaches in NFL history to win more than 300 games.
Shula also played seven seasons as a defensive back in the NFL after being drafted by the Cleveland Browns in the ninth round (110th overall) of the 1951 draft after playing collegiately at John Carroll University in Cleveland. He had 21 career interceptions in seven NFL seasons for Cleveland (1951-52), Baltimore (1953-56) and Washington (1957).
Both of Shula's sons followed him into the NFL coaching ranks. Mike Shula is the quarterbacks coach for the Denver Broncos and David Shula was the Cincinnati Bengals' head coach from 1992 to 1996. He also played one season with Baltimore (1981).

 

[OldSchool]

Passing of a legend. Respects to his family.

 

[den-the-coach]

One of the Greats.....My prayers go out to his family and Don Shula made the NFL a better place both as a player and as a Head Football Coach.....The question, who did he replace as Head Coach of the Miami Dolphins??? Don't google it, you pencil neck geeks.

 

[dieterbrock]

One of the Greats.....My prayers go out to his family and Don Shula made the NFL a better place both as a player and as a Head Football Coach.....The question, who did he replace as Head Coach of the Miami Dolphins??? Don't google it, you pencil neck geeks.

I know he replaced Weeb Ewbank as head coach of the Colts (at least I think I know that) but havent a clue about the Dolphins

 

[RamDino]

Don Shula, along with several other legendary coaches, made the NFL what it is today. Glad he was able to die at home. Rest in peace Mr. Shula.

 

[den-the-coach]

I know he replaced Weeb Ewbank as head coach of the Colts (at least I think I know that) but havent a clue about the Dolphins

Good try....Appreciate you not looking it up...The answer is George Wilson, who took over the Dolphins in 1966 and had been the Head Coach of the Detroit Lions....Former Ram owner Carroll Rosenbloom fired some great Head Coaches that's for sure.

 

[rdw]

RIP coach Shula.. we should all be so blessed as to live to the ripe old age of 90.

 

[ReekofRams]

One of the Greats.....My prayers go out to his family and Don Shula made the NFL a better place both as a player and as a Head Football Coach.....The question, who did he replace as Head Coach of the Miami Dolphins??? Don't google it, you pencil neck geeks.

George Wilson who was never heard from again.

 

[Selassie I]

He is a legend... especially in South Florida. Class act for sure. My Dad is a Phin fan so I have heard about coach Shula since I was young. Through the years I have been to more than one event where he was there (sometimes as a speaker)... he was super down to earth and friendly.

He's got a few Steak Houses down here that have excellent food... I'll have to get back to one of those as soon as I can.

 

[So Ram]

Passing of a legend. Respects to his family.

Class Act over the years.

In a sense apart of The Rams family.
Bobby Evans is a Ram because of the tree. Staley the DC also has the connection with Chris Shula.

Chris Shula

 

[So Ram]

Having Family members from this time from C-19 makes closer tough.

 

[sdakotaram]

One of the all time greats......RIP Coach Shula!

 

[PressureD41]

RIP coach, hope Chris is doing ok

 

[Loyal]

I have a connection to the Dolphins. I had a girl tomboy when I was young that used to beat me up. She was a Dolphins fan in '72, and I of course wore my white and blue Rams gear. Life imitated sports, I suppose.

Come at me, now, Eileen Segara! *flexes

 

[den-the-coach]

He's got a few Steak Houses down here that have excellent food... I'll have to get back to one of those as soon as I can.

Once this is over, how about I fly down and join you my Ram brother...First two rounds are on me.

 

[Corbin]

Love Don Shula, before my time really, remember his last few years. Wish his family the best. Love he called out the Pats for they're cheating ways as well. Him and Marino are the reasons I'll always have a bit of a soft spot for the Dolphins.

 

[Selassie I]

Once this is over, how about I fly down and join you my Ram brother...First two rounds are on me.

Hell yeah.... that would be great!

I've been to 2 of his steak houses. They are both called Shula's and they are both in Westin hotels. I always eat there when I have had to go to Tallahassee. They have one right here in O-Town too.

Would love to join you for a long dinner there any time.

 

[Ram65]

I became best friends with a kid that moved into the neighborhood from Maryland. The family was big Colts and Orioles fans. They were big Don Shula fans and of course Johnny U. I liked the Rams and Dodgers. Back then the Rams and Colts were in the Coastal Division and both teams were very good. That 4-0 sweep of the Dodgers in 1966 really hurt. Living in Jersey 35 Miles from New York the talk was all about the Jets and Namath. Doesn't seem that long ago.

Don Shula was a big part of the NFL history with that first named Super Bowl and the only undefeated NFL team in Miami. RIP Don.

Shula’s fateful loss

If the Baltimore Colts had not lost to the New York Jets in Super Bowl III, this season’s New England Patriots probably would be all alone in chasing undefeated glory. That’s because th…

www.baltimoresun.com

Shula's fateful loss

By BY MIKE KLINGAMAN
SUN REPORTER |
FEB 01, 2008 | 3:00 AM

Don Shula, shown as the Colts' coach in 1963, saw his relationship with team owner Carroll Rosenbloom go sour after the Super Bowl III loss.(Sun file photo)

If the Baltimore Colts had not lost to the New York Jets in Super Bowl III, this season's New England Patriots probably would be all alone in chasing undefeated glory.

That's because the seeds of the NFL's only unbeaten team in the Super Bowl era - the 1972 Miami Dolphins - were sown in the Colts' stunning 16-7 loss in that January 1969 title game.

Thirty-nine years ago, the Colts' collapse in that championship meeting created a rift between the club's owner and coach, one that festered another year until Don Shula left town.

Shula went to Miami and built the Dolphins' dynasty, topped by the '72 club that finished 17-0, beating the Washington Redskins in the Super Bowl.

And all because of a Baltimore loss that stuck in owner Carroll Rosenbloom's craw.

"When you look back on your life and the directions it takes and the decisions that are made, it's amazing how things unfold," said Shula, 78, the winningest coach in NFL history.

"After Super Bowl III, my relationship with Rosenbloom was not very pleasant. I loved Baltimore - the people, the fans and everything that Colts football stood for. But Rosenbloom's New York buddies never let him forget [the heavily favored Colts' loss], and he never let me forget it.

"If we had won that game, and continued to win, I certainly wouldn't have gone. I'd still be in Baltimore, eating crab cakes."

In his last season with the Colts, before he left town, Shula gathered the pieces from that disappointing loss and added to the legacy that would land him in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

"When Shula lost the Super Bowl, his job was pretty much gone," said Bobby Boyd, then an All-Pro defensive back for the Colts. Nonetheless, despite Rosenbloom's sniping, Shula went to work, determined to toughen the defense made penetrable by the Jets' short-passing attack.

"[Jets quarterback] Joe Namath had nitpicked us to death throwing underneath our coverage," said Boyd, who became a Colts assistant coach after the Super Bowl. His third day there, Boyd was summoned to Shula's office.

"We need a strategy to combat the short stuff," Shula said.

For three hours, the two men worked, devising a plan that broke the mold of traditional zone coverage and establishing a template for defending the revved-up passing games of today.

The Colts called it the double zone, a scheme whose purpose was to take away the short game. It now is called the cover-2, and its primary function is to shut down long passes.

Different names, different purposes, but still basically the same defense.

The Colts had the cornerbacks and linebackers combine to defend against short passes, while dropping the two safeties to guard against the bomb.

Gradually, the double zone worked its way into Baltimore's game plan. Shula gave it a trial run in 1969. When he left the Colts, the double zone became a favorite of Shula's successor, Don McCafferty, who rode it clear to a Super Bowl victory in January 1971.

"In my opinion, we won Super Bowl V because of that defense," Boyd said. "Nobody else in the league was using it. Teams didn't know how to attack it."

Shula, of course, took the scheme with him to Miami, winning consecutive Super Bowls in 1973 and '74.

Those Dolphins teams were led by quarterback Bob Griese. However, the starter during much of Miami's undefeated 1972 season was a player familiar to Colts fans - Earl Morrall.

In 1968, Morrall started the entire season for the Colts, including the Super Bowl loss, for an injured John Unitas, who had healed enough to play by the title game. After a horrid first half, Shula benched Morrall for Unitas, who led the Colts to their only touchdown.

In 1972, Morrall came off the bench again, starting 11 games for the injured Griese. But unlike with the Colts, Shula reinstated his mainstay (Griese) for the Super Bowl.

Had Shula learned from his earlier Super Bowl loss?

"Different circumstances," he said. "Griese was my quarterback of the future and he was healthy; John was on the downside of his career - and still hurting."

However, several Colts who were there contend that Shula wised up after Super Bowl III.

"I think Shula learned a lesson in that game," said Dan Sullivan, an offensive guard. "In 1972, he must have thought, 'It'll be hard to bench Morrall, who won 80 percent of our games ... but I'm going to go with my No. 1 guy, though he's a little rusty.' "

With Miami, Shula had no intention of reliving the past, halfback Tom Matte said.

"In Super Bowl III, Shula learned he didn't put [Unitas] in fast enough," Matte said. "If you're behind, you put your team leader in there and there's a change in attitude.

"When John comes in, the defense gets worried and the offense says, 'Oh boy, the Holy Grail is in the huddle.' "

mike.klingaman@baltsun.com

 

[Loyal]

Hell yeah.... that would be great!

I've been to 2 of his steak houses. They are both called Shula's and they are both in Westin hotels. I always eat there when I have had to go to Tallahassee. They have one right here in O-Town too.

Would love to join you for a long dinner there any time.

Hell yeah! and the next winter, I wanna eat some New York Strip at Daniellas Steakouse. Maybe we could do a little snow blowing and curling? ~ Selassie @den-the-coach

View: https://i.imgur.com/0ZoxEt6.png

 

[Selassie I]

Hell yeah! and the next winter, I wanna eat some New York Strip at Daniellas Steakouse. Maybe we could do a little snow blowing and curling? ~ Selassie @den-the-coach

View: https://i.imgur.com/0ZoxEt6.png

Fuck that shit. I don't mix with cold or snow.