Donald Francis Shula (January 4, 1930 – May 4, 2020) was an American football defensive back and coach who served as a head coach in the National Football League (NFL) from 1963 to 1995. The head coach of the Miami Dolphins for most of his career, Shula is the NFL's winningest head coach at 347 career victories and 328 regular season victories. He is regarded as one of the greatest head coaches of all time.
Shula held his first head coaching position with the Baltimore Colts for seven seasons and spent his next 26 seasons with Miami. With the Dolphins, he led the team to two consecutive Super Bowl titles in Super Bowl VII and Super Bowl VIII. His first Super Bowl title during 1972 is the only perfect season in NFL history.
Shula was the first head coach to appear in six Super Bowls, five with the Dolphins and one with the Colts. His six Super Bowl appearances rank second among head coaches and he has the most Super Bowl losses at four. He was also the first head coach to bring two franchises to the Super Bowl and appear in three consecutive Super Bowls, which he accomplished with the Dolphins from 1971 to 1973.