David Donald Shula (born May 28, 1959) is a former American football coach and player. Shula served as the head coach for the Cincinnati Bengals of the National Football League (NFL) from 1992 to 1996, compiling a record of 19–52. He is the son of Pro Football Hall of Fame coach Don Shula and brother of fellow football coach Mike Shula.
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born: | May 28, 1959 Lexington, Kentucky, U.S. |
| Height: | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) |
| Weight: | 182 lb (83 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school: | Chaminade (Hollywood, Florida) |
| College: | Dartmouth |
| Undrafted: | 1981 |
| Career history | |
| As a player: | |
| As a coach: | |
| |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| Head coaching record | |
| Regular season: | 19–52 (.268) |
| Record at Pro Football Reference | |
| Stats at Pro Football Reference | |
Biography
editThe Shula family moved to Detroit in 1960 and Baltimore in 1963, following Don Shula's career in the NFL. The family settled in Miami Lakes, Florida in 1970, where Dave Shula was a high school football and baseball player at Hollywood Chaminade High School. Shula was a star wide receiver at Dartmouth College, where he graduated with a degree in history in 1981.
NFL career
editShula's career as an NFL player was a brief one-season appearance as a wide receiver and punt returner with the Baltimore Colts in 1981. He began his coaching career with the Miami Dolphins in 1982, under his father as head coach. In 1989, Shula was hired by Jimmy Johnson to be his offensive coordinator for the Dallas Cowboys, a position he held for two seasons. Shula clashed with players due to trust differences [1] and was demoted from that position after the 1990 season, and soon thereafter left the Cowboys to take an assistant coaching position with the Cincinnati Bengals in 1991.
In 1992, Shula was named head coach of the Bengals. At age 32, he was one of the youngest men to achieve such a position with an NFL team. The younger Shula faced off against his father twice, dubbed Shula Bowl I and Shula Bowl II by the media, the first father and son head coaches to face each other in NFL history.[2] Don's Dolphins beat Dave's Bengals in both games, 23–7 in 1994 and 26–23 in 1995. Both games were played in Cincinnati. The younger Shula's stint with the Bengals was unsuccessful and the team was dismal during the 1990s. The team compiled a 19–52 record over Shula's four and a half years at the helm. Infamously, Shula was hired over Kansas City Chiefs defensive coordinator Bill Cowher. Cowher took the head coaching position with the rival Pittsburgh Steelers that same offseason and went on to have a 22–9 career record against the Bengals, the most wins he had against any team as a head coach. This included an 8–1 record against Shula.
The Bengals fired Shula after starting the 1996 season 1–6. Shula lost 50 games faster than any NFL coach in history, in 69 games. Shula surpassed former Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coach John McKay as the fastest coach to 50 losses to begin an NFL coaching career.[3]
After a 22-year absence from coaching, Dave Shula was hired as a wide receivers coach by Dartmouth College on March 29, 2018.[4][5]
Business career
editAfter leaving football, Shula joined the family steakhouse business in 1997 and helped expand the franchise internationally.[6] He is an amateur golfer, tennis player and marathon runner. Dave is married and has three sons, Daniel, Chris and Matthew.[citation needed]
Head coaching record
edit| Team | Year | Regular Season | Post Season | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Won | Lost | Ties | Win % | Finish | Won | Lost | Win % | Result | ||
| CIN | 1992 | 5 | 11 | 0 | .313 | 4th in AFC Central | – | – | – | – |
| CIN | 1993 | 3 | 13 | 0 | .188 | 4th in AFC Central | – | – | – | – |
| CIN | 1994 | 3 | 13 | 0 | .188 | 3rd in AFC Central | – | – | – | – |
| CIN | 1995 | 7 | 9 | 0 | .438 | 3rd in AFC Central | – | – | – | – |
| CIN | 1996 | 1 | 6 | 0 | .143 | 3rd in AFC Central | – | – | – | Fired midseason |
| CIN Total | 19 | 52 | 0 | .268 | – | – | – | – | ||
| Total | 19 | 52 | 0 | .268 | – | – | – | – | ||
References
edit- ^ See Pearlman, Jeff, BOYS WILL BE BOYS: THE GLORY DAYS AND PARTY NIGHTS OF THE DALLAS COWBOYS DYNASTY, pp. 85-90
- ^ 100 Things Dolphins Fans Should Know and Do Before They Die, Armando Salguero, Triumph Books, Chicago, 2020, ISBN 978-1-62937-722-3, p.157
- ^ 100 Things Dolphins Fans Should Know and Do Before They Die, Armando Salguero, Triumph Books, Chicago, 2020, ISBN 978-1-62937-722-3, p.158
- ^ Cote, Greg (April 2, 2018). "He never fell out of love with coaching and he's back after 21 years. His name is Shula". Miami Herald. Retrieved November 19, 2018.
- ^ "Valley News - Dartmouth Football Hires Former NFL Head Coach David Shula as Assistant". Archived from the original on March 31, 2018.
- ^ "After 22-year sabbatical, Dave Shula back as Dartmouth WRs coach". CollegeFootballTalk. April 3, 2018. Retrieved April 4, 2018.