Don Shula still holds the record of the winningest coach in NFL history with 347 wins across two teams — the Baltimore Colts and the Miami Dolphins. Shula’s career as a coach spanned from 1963 to 1995 and he played for seven seasons as a defensive back in the 1950s for the Cleveland Browns, Baltimore Colts and Washington Redskins. He got his break into coaching at the University of Virginia, transitioned to the NFL with the Detroit Lions and was made head coach of the Baltimore Colts in 1963. He was named NFL Coach of the Year thrice in 1964, 1967 and 1968. He guided the Colts to a win in the NFL Championship Game against the Browns but lost Super Bowl III after being heavily favored over the New York Jets by their quarterback Joe Namath. He then won 11 division titles, 5 AFC Championships and back-to-back Super Bowls with the Dolphins in 1973 and 1974. Before his NFL success as a coach, he served in the Ohio Army National Guard and was activated during the Korean War.
Shula served as a sergeant in the Guard with the 145th Infantry Regiment, 37th Infantry Division in Ohio and at Fort Polk, Louisiana. He was activated from January to November of 1952 and returned to Ohio when his unit was deactivated. He continued his NFL playing career and then transitioned to coaching in the late 1950s. He made his head coaching debut in 1963 with the Baltimore Colts and was the youngest coach at 33 years old in league history at the time. Shula led a team full of stars with Johnny Unitas, Raymond Berry, John Mackey and Gino Marchetti. The team had successful regular seasons and many close calls in key games, which by 1968, had led to the Colts being in the Super Bowl III versus the upstart New York Jets. The Colts owner Carroll Rosenbloom wanted to win the big game and had seen Shula have a few opportunities. The Colts had a 13-1 record in 1968 and came in the Super Bowl heavily favored. They unfortunately lost to the Joe Namath-led Jets 16-7, which led to Shula’s dismissal from Baltimore in 1969. He compiled an overall 73-26-4 record as the head coach with two big upsets, one in the 1964 NFL Championship Game and Super Bowl III.
Shula’s next home as head coach was the Miami Dolphins, where he would coach from 1970 to 1995. Joe Robbie, owner of the Dolphins made Shula an offer he couldn’t refuse so he joined the club. Shula took over a poor Miami team and had immediate success and within two years was in Super Bowl VI against the Cowboys. The team lost to a tough Dallas team coached by Tom Landry, another veteran and iconic leader. Shula again had a cast of all-stars with Bob Griese at quarterback, Larry Csonka at fullback, Mercury Morris and Jim Kiick at running backs, Nick Buoniconti at linebacker and Paul Warfield at wide receiver. He even utilized his former backup quarterback from the Colts, Earl Morrall, when Griese would go down with injuries. In 1972 the Dolphins were back and in the Super Bowl again this time against the Washington Redskins. They had a perfect 17-0 season and won the game 14-7. The season was tumultuous with Griese going down in game five of the regular season and Earl Morrall stepping in to lead the team to numerous victories. Griese came back to the starting lineup in the playoffs and led the team to victory in the Super Bowl.
In 1973 the Dolphins came back in force and won Super Bowl VIII over the Minnesota Vikings 24-7. They came close to a three-peat the next season but lost by two points 28-26 to the Oakland Raiders in a divisional game. They lost on a desperation play by the Raiders that is now called The Sea of Hands play in the remaining 35 seconds of the game. The team suffered many losses the next season with the upstart WFL making huge offers to their stars they could not match. Csonka, Kiick and Warfield left the team for greener pastures. The Dolphins would continue to have winning seasons but would not return to the big game until 1982 and this time against the Redskins. The Dolphins played a good game but lost 27-17. Two years later under the helm of Dan Marino at quarterback and the Marks Brothers (Mark Clayton and Mark Duper) wide receivers they again returned to the big show. They faced the Joe Montana-led 49ers and lost the Super Bowl 38-16.
Shula led the Dolphins to many more wins but did not make it back to the Super Bowl. Marino consistently broke passing records but without a decent running game, the team was usually outmatched in the playoffs. The team went to the playoffs throughout the 1990s; 1990, 1992, 1994 and 1995, Shula’s final season. Each ending in defeat. The closest they came to the Super Bowl was the 1994 loss to the San Diego Chargers in the AFC Championship Game. The Chargers were later crushed by the 49ers in the Super Bowl 49-26. His teams attended and won the most Super Bowls on a running-focused offense with a strong defense. The Marino Super Bowl and later teams were more passing-oriented. He retired from the game in 1996 with 328 wins, 156 losses and 6 ties. All in all a strong career with many legendary impacts for a military veteran and sergeant.
His later life included business ventures with Shula brand restaurants in Florida which included hotels and a golf club. His son, Dave Shula, coached the Cincinnati Bengals in the 1990s. Don Shula promoted lots of different products and was named Dolphins vice-chairman in his retirement. He loved his family and golf. He married Dorothy Bartish in 1958 and remained married until her passing in 1991. Shula spent time at Pebble Beach, CA for golf and presented Tiger Woods with the Winners Cup for the 2007 WGC-CA Golf Tournament at Doral Resort in Florida. He received the Ellis Island Medal of Honor for his humanitarian efforts throughout his life. He was a devout Catholic and passed at age 90 in 2020 at his home in Indian Creek, Florida.