Tony Dungy of the Indianapolis Colts became the first African
American NFL head coach to win a Super Bowl.
The victory marked the first time a Black head coach had
reached the National Football League’s championship game,
one that featured not just one, but two Black head coaches.
Super Bowl XLI pitted Dungy and his Colts against Lovie Smith,
head coach of the Chicago Bears.
The Bears shocked the Colts with a 92-yard kick return for a
touchdown in the first 14 seconds of the game. Despite this
demoralizing start, the Colts and quarterback Peyton Manning
came back to defeat the Bears, 29-17.
It was the Colts’ first Super Bowl victory since 1971, when they
played in Baltimore.
Dungy (center) along with colleagues Dan Patrick and Rodney Harrison at an NFL game in Denver in September 2013.
Anthony Kevin Dungy (69).
Since retiring, Dungy has served as a TV sports analyst. He
is an evangelical Christian, and at one point in his coaching
career considered leaving football for the prison ministry.
Throughout his career, he has remained involved with
community service organizations.