Photo Credit – Sports Illustrated
During the month of May, the Alabama Football Coaches Association is highlighting the life and career of the great Vince Lombardi. Nearly fifty years after his death, Lombardi’s name is still synonymous with excellence. The Super Bowl trophy is fittingly named after him, as his Green Bay Packers won the first two Super Bowl championships. Lombardi drove the perennial losers in green into the NFL championship game in just two seasons. His work ethic, beliefs and leadership abilities have been studied for decades by new generations of coaches and business leaders. A truly great orator, Lombardi was an Italian American who was 46 years old when he coached his first game as a head coach.
In nine seasons at Green Bay, the Packers won five NFL championships. This included three in a row from 1965-1967. He retired after the 1967 season to be general manager of the Packers for one season. Lombardi was miserable off the field and returned to coaching in 1969 as head coach of the Washington Redskins. He led the Redskins to a 7-5-2 record, the team’s first winning season in 14 years. Coach Lombardi passed away from cancer in September of 1970 at the age of 57.
Vince Lombardi was a head coach for only ten seasons. Yet no discussion of the greatest coach in football history can be complete without him. We hope you will join us each day this month as we take a look at the life of this great coaching legend.
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