Mike Ditka Biography - "you Could Hear The House Rock", Head Coach Of The Chicago Bears, New Orleans Saints Head Coach - SELECTED WRITINGS BY DITKA:
football dallas cowboys
1939-
American football coach
Football coach Mike Ditka, known as "Iron Mike" and "Da Coach," was a star tight end for the Chicago Bears from 1961 through 1966, before finishing his playing career with the Philadelphia Eagles and Dallas Cowboys. After retiring from play in 1972, he became an assistant coach of the Dallas Cowboys. He then worked as head coach of the Bears for 11 years, during which he had a 112-68 record and led Chicago to victory in the Super Bowl. Ditka subsequently became coach of the New Orleans Saints, and is now retired. A successful player and coach, he is now a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
SELECTED WRITINGS BY DITKA:
(With Don Pierson) Ditka: An Autobiography, Bonus Books, 1987.
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The son of a steelworker from Aliquippa, Pennsylvania, Ditka was large and strong even as a child. In People, Jack Friedman quoted Ditka's father, Mike Sr., who said that when Ditka did pushups, "You could hear the house rock." Ditka went on to play football at the University of Pittsburgh, where, as an end, he was an All-American. However, in his senior year, he also showed t…
In 1982, the Chicago Bears' famed coach, George Halas, who had drafted Ditka as a player, brought him back to Chicago, this time as head coach of the Bears. He would coach the Bears for 11 seasons, period of time that would bring him lasting fame in football. In the 1980s, the Bears were a strong team; from 1985 to 1988, they had 52 regular-season victories, the most ever by an NFL team in …
When the New Orleans Saints offered him a job as head coach, he was skeptical about whether they would actually give it to him and whether he should take it. But when he talked to Saints owner Tom Benson, he became excited about the idea. "I firmly believe everything happens for a reason, and as I sat in that room, I began to think this was where I was meant to be." Ironically, the S…
Address: c/o Nationwide Speaker Bureau, Inc., 120 El Camino Drive, Beverly Hills, CA 90212; Mike Ditka's Restaurant, 100 E. Chestnut Street, Chicago, IL 60611. Fax: 310-273-5928. Phone: 310-273-8807. Online: www.nationwidespeakers.com; www.mikeditkaschicago.com.
Since leaving the Saints, Ditka has continued to work as a motivational speaker, television commentator on CBS Sports, and al…
Attner, Paul. "Everything's Going My Way." Sporting News, July 14, 1997, 38. Friedman, Jack. "Staring Down His Rowdy Ruffians, Chicago Coach Mike Ditka Prods the Bears to the Super Bowl." People, January 5, 1987, 66. King, Peter. "The Ditka Dilemma." Sports Illustrated, July 30, 1990, 44. King, Peter. "Touch Down." Sports Illustrated, …
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