Don Shula lived a “football life” right until the very end

For most, the legend of former Miami Dolphins head coach Don Shula centers on an undefeated season and the most wins in NFL history but it was more than that.

Don Shula lived a football life and there are not many who truly know about what he did to shape the NFL from his earliest days to his late in life years. For half a century, Don Shula gave himself to a game that he loved and we only know pieces of it.

Don Shula’s life began in a small northern Ohio community on the shores of Lake Erie. He would graduate high-school as World War II came to an end and by chance would attend John Carroll University in Ohio. He turned a one-year scholarship into a full scholarship as a halfback.

After college, he would be drafted by legendary coach Paul Brown in the 9th round of the 1951 draft as his football career stayed in Ohio. He would play a short time for the Browns when Paul Brown traded Shula and Carl Tassef to the Colts. He would finish his 7 year NFL career with one final season in Washinton. He had 21 interceptions in that time.

Shula would leave the NFL but it wouldn’t be for long. After a couple of one-year stints on the college level, Shula joined the Lions as a secondary coach in the last 1950’s and the Lions would become one of the best defenses in the league. In 1963, the Colts would hire him as their head coach. Shula would take the Colts to the Super Bowl but we all know the lore that is now associated with Super Bowl III.

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His Miami Dolphins’ future would begin the following year when the upstart Miami Dolphins under owner Joe Robbie and his partner Danny Thomas, took Shula from the Colts to replace George Wilson. The NFL intervened and the Dolphins had to give the Colts a first-round draft pick as compensation.

Shula turned the expansion team into a contender within a couple of years. He used a stellar running game that included Larry Csonka and Jim Kiick and eventually Mercury Morris. He has a capable quarterback, and one of the top defenses in NFL history. After losing to the Cowboys in Super Bowl VI, Shula led his team to the only perfect season in modern NFL history. He took the team back to the Super Bowl the following year for back-to-back-back appearances and two wins.

While Shula started as a power running coach, he adapted his game planning as the NFL evolved. He found more balance to his offenses in the early ’80s before turning over the offense to Dan Marino as the team made a turn to the air game.

Shula served most of his coaching career on the NFL’s competition committee and shaped and shifted the NFL rules as the league progressed. His retirement was controversial, however. Then owner Wayne Huizenga wanted to make a change and Shula stepped aside.

Shula left the NFL as the winningest coach in history but he continued to support the league and worked with them outside of the games on Sunday. He continued to support the city that embraced him and made appearances at the stadium on game day. Waving to the fans and meeting players and coaches.

A lifetime of football that spanned more than sixty years dating back to his days on the Lake Erie coast led to a legacy that will never be forgotten.