Dave Wannstedt

David Wannstedt (born May 21, 1952) is a former American football coach.

He has been the head coach of the Chicago Bears and Miami Dolphins of the National Football League (NFL).

As a Pittsburgh area native, former Pitt player (offensive tackle from 1971 to 1973), Pitt graduate (B.S. in 1974; M.Ed. in 1976), and previous graduate assistant coach at the university under Johnny Majors and Jackie Sherrill (1975–78), Wannstedt had strong ties to both the university and the city.

Wannstedt was initially interested in the job but pulled back over salary issues and concerns about his ability to keep a quality staff.

After a successful career with the Panthers, he was chosen in the fifteenth round of the 1974 NFL draft by the Green Bay Packers, but spent his only NFL season on the injured reserve list with a neck injury.

In 1975, Pitt coach Johnny Majors hired him as a graduate assistant coach.

The following year, while at Pitt, he earned his master's degree.

He was on the staff when the Panthers won the 1976 NCAA Division I-A national football championship with a victory over the Georgia Bulldogs in the 1977 Sugar Bowl.

In 1977, Jimmy Johnson joined the staff of the Pitt Panthers and the two would forge a long lasting personal and professional bond.

When Johnson left to become the head coach of the Oklahoma State Cowboys in 1979, he invited Wannstedt to join his staff.

Wannstedt served as defensive line coach for the Oklahoma State Cowboys for the 1979 and 1980 seasons and was promoted to defensive coordinator in 1981, a spot he held for two seasons.

He moved on to the University of Southern California in 1983 to coach the Trojans and served as the defensive line coach for three years.

In 1986, Wannstedt became defensive coordinator for the Miami Hurricanes under friend and mentor Jimmy Johnson, where they won a national championship in 1987.

When Johnson was hired as head coach of the Dallas Cowboys in 1989, Wannstedt joined Dallas' staff as defensive coordinator.

The Cowboys defense was considered one of the best in the NFL under Wannstedt's leadership and he became a prime candidate to become an NFL head coach.

When Chuck Noll retired as head coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers, in 1992, Wannstedt was one of the finalists for the job, but was ultimately edged out by fellow Pittsburgh-area native Bill Cowher.

On January 19, 1993, he was hired as the head coach of the Chicago Bears replacing legendary coach Mike Ditka, another former Pitt Panther.

Wannstedt's tenure at Chicago was tumultuous.

He led the Bears to only one postseason appearance in his 6 years at Chicago and compiled a 41–57 record.

After Wannstedt posted back-to-back 4–12 seasons and a 1–11 overall record against long-time rival, the Green Bay Packers, Bears owner Michael McCaskey fired Wannstedt on December 28, 1998, a day when five NFL head coaches – one sixth of the league – lost their jobs.

Four of those coaches—Wannstedt, Ted Marchibroda, Ray Rhodes, and Dom Capers—were fired within one hour, while Dennis Erickson was fired later that day.

In 1999, Wannstedt again joined coach Jimmy Johnson's staff—this time, as defensive coordinator and assistant head coach of the Miami Dolphins.

When the then-56-year-old Johnson suddenly announced his retirement on January 16, 2000, Wannstedt was immediately named Johnson's successor.

Under Wannstedt, the Dolphins' regular season record was 42–31, with playoff appearances in his first two seasons.

Wannstedt earned a great deal of praise for guiding the Dolphins through the first few seasons after the retirement of Dan Marino, but his in-game coaching became increasingly unpopular with Dolphins fans, not least in 2002 when the team stopped giving the ball to Ricky Williams and inexplicably gave the New England Patriots several chances to come back and tie the game and then win it in overtime, starting a six-season playoff drought.

Fans were further enraged when Wannstedt, whose contract as head coach also gave him the right to overrule then-Dolphins general manager Rick Spielman on draft decisions, nixed Spielman's plan to take Anquan Boldin in the second round and instead chose a linebacker named Eddie Moore.[needs citation]Boldin was an immediate star, winning NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year in 2003, was a three-time Pro Bowler, and was a stand-out receiver in his 13-year career.

Moore was unable to help Miami on either defense or special teams and was gone from the team (and then the NFL) in just a few years.

Along with another late-season collapse in 2003 and no playoff appearance that year, Wannstedt became the face of a rapidly declining franchise who most fans and many players no longer believed in.

Wannstedt resigned as head coach midway through the 2004 season, with the Dolphins' record standing at 1–8.

Less than two months later, he agreed to return home to fill the head coach vacancy at his alma mater, the University of Pittsburgh.

Wannstedt finished his tenure in Miami with a 42–31 record and to date, is the team's last head coach with prior NFL head coaching experience.

Wannstedt has served longer than any other coach in Dolphins history except Don Shula.

When University of Pittsburgh head coach Walt Harris was forced to resign, Wannstedt, with NFL experience and a proven college recruiting record, immediately became a candidate to replace him.

After working out several issues with the Pitt athletic department including pay raises for assistant coaches, Wannstedt agreed to Pitt's offer and was named head coach on December 23, 2004.

Wannstedt said that recruiting would be a top priority under his leadership.

Harris had been roundly criticized during his tenure for not recruiting top high school talent, especially in the crucial and talent-laden western Pennsylvania area.

He was also the head coach of the University of Pittsburgh football team from 2005 to 2010.

He also was a long-time assistant to Jimmy Johnson with the Dallas Cowboys, Miami Hurricanes, and Oklahoma State Cowboys as well as an associate of Johnson when both were assistants at the University of Pittsburgh.

Wannstedt was born in Baldwin, Pennsylvania and attended Baldwin High School.

He earned an athletic scholarship to the University of Pittsburgh playing offensive tackle and blocking for future Heisman Trophy winner Tony Dorsett.