RIP Don Shula

[JasonEvans]

90 years old... still the only coach to have an undefeated Super Bowl champ.

https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/...-shula-dies-90

-Jason "made a pretty good steak too" Evans

[OZZIE4DUKE]

90 years old... still the only coach to have an undefeated Super Bowl champ.

https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/...-shula-dies-90

-Jason "made a pretty good steak too" Evans

Don Shula moved to Miami and my parents to Ft. Lauderdale in the summer of 1970. My parents were kind enough to take 16 year old me with them! My dad got us 4 season tickets to the Dolphins and my allegiance morphed from the NY Jets to the Dolphins, although I'll admit to rooting for the Jets the first time the Jets came to Miami (in 1970), but not in '71. My rooting for the Dolphins lasted until Dan Marina retired after the 1999 season, Shula having retired years earlier.

I've never eaten at a Don Shula Steak House, although I did visit one up near Alexandria, VA. I stopped in just to check it out and went into the bar. This was ~2004ish. I told the bar tender I could still name 20 or more of the (24) starters (including kickers) from the 1972 perfect season, and he said if I could, he'd buy me a drink! Got 22 of them, forgetting an OT and a CB. The beer delicious!

RIP Don.

[tommy]

Don Shula moved to Miami and my parents to Ft. Lauderdale in the summer of 1970. My parents were kind enough to take 16 year old me with them! My dad got us 4 season tickets to the Dolphins and my allegiance morphed from the NY Jets to the Dolphins, although I'll admit to rooting for the Jets the first time the Jets came to Miami (in 1970), but not in '71. My rooting for the Dolphins lasted until Dan Marina retired after the 1999 season, Shula having retired years earlier.

I've never eaten at a Don Shula Steak House, although I did visit one up near Alexandria, VA. I stopped in just to check it out and went into the bar. This was ~2004ish. I told the bar tender I could still name 20 or more of the (24) starters (including kickers) from the 1972 perfect season, and he said if I could, he'd buy me a drink! Got 22 of them, forgetting an OT and a CB. The beer delicious!

RIP Don.

My family moved to Miami in '69 when I was 5 years old, and we had season tickets to the Dolphins starting in '71, which was the first of 3 consecutive Super Bowls for the very young franchise, winning two. Never missed a non-Monday night game in the Orange Bowl. Shula has been a Miami sports icon for 50 years. As the all-time leader in wins, plus the leader of the unique perfect season of '72 -- done with a "no name" defense -- he is on the Mt. Rushmore of NFL coaches along with Lombardi, Bellichick, and Walsh. In my opinion. Landry and Noll and I guess Paul Brown a half step behind that first four.

[Duke79UNLV77]

I grew up a Dolphins fan (though I have little interest in the NFL now) and felt bad for Shula with how his tenure ended. Years later, the one time I've gotten to fly on a corporate jet, I happened to meet him at the private airport outside of Philly. He saw that he'd been recognized and came up and shook hands. It turns out he wanted to play golf at August National that afternoon and figured he'd go to the private airport and someone would give him a ride because, hey, he was Don Shula. I'm sure someone did. I didn't feel so sorry for him after that. He was nice and courteous. Unfortunately, it was before phone selfies.

Just watching a documentary on him, and Czonka told a story about having to borrow the Raiders' locker room and seeing the game plan for their game that weekend in a locker. Czonka gave it to the offensive coordinator. The Raiders won, and Czonka asked the coordinator what happened. The offensive coordinator said he'd given the game plan to Shula, who threw it away without looking at it. He was no Belichick/Brady.