Former Hoosier Doug Crusan Remembers Greatness of Don Shula, Who Passed Away Monday
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — Don Shula will always be remembered for his perfect season, when he coached the Miami Dolphins to a 17-0 record and a Super Bowl title in 1972.
But former Indiana star Doug Crusan, a starting offensive tackle on that unbeaten team, thinks of Shula as the perfect man and coach, as well.
Shula passed away Monday at his home in South Florida. He was 90 years old.
"He was an unbelievable coach and an even better person,'' said Crusan, who lives in Fishers, Ind., with his wife, Dianne. "Looking back, it was really nice that all of us from that 1972 team were able to be with him in December when the NFL honored us as being the best team in the 100 years of the league.
"He was still really sharp, and he knew all of us by name, with nobody even prompting him, It's just so sad, a few months later, that he's gone. I'm really glad we had that one last party together with him. He's been a wonderful man, and a wonderful friend, for a lot of years.
Crusan said he has seen Shula fairly regularly through the years since he played for him in Miami from 1968 to 1974. He was drafted in the first round by the Dolphins in 1968, a year after being a staple on Indiana's 1967 Rose Bowl team.
"We always have reunions for that undefeated team every five years, and we are still a very close-knit group, that entire team,'' Crusan said. "This was a bonus in December, too, with the 100-year anniversary of the league, that we were able to get together one more time. I can't tell you how much fun we all have when we get together. We're all still telling the same stories a billion times over now.''
Don Shula (front row, center) and players from his 1972 undefeated Miami Dolphins team raise a glass to toast their success during a 40th anniversary party at Shula's house on Dec. 13, 2012. (Photo courtesy of Doug Crusan)
Crusan joked that he always worried about the dates of his reunions with the 1972 Dolphins, because the 1967 Rose Bowl celebrations in Bloomington are always the same year. Crusan was a captain on that Indiana Rose Bowl team, considered the best in IU history.
"I've been very lucky that the reunions have never once fallen on the same weekend,'' he said. "Those are two monumental celebrations in my career and I couldn't imagine having to choose between the two. I always sweat it out until I get the dates. Thankfully, I've never missed a single one.''
Shula is the winningest coach in NFL history. He coached the Dolphins from 1970 through 1995 and ended his legendary career with a 347-173-6 record. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1997. He coached the Baltimore Colts for seven years prior to that.
Shula took Crusan and the Dolphins to three straight Super Bowls, losing Super Bowl XI before winning Super Bowls the next two years.
"Those two years, we were a combined 32-2 and we felt like we'd never lose,'' Crusan said. "Coach Shula was a master at what he did. He was all about preparation and repeating things over and over to get it right. And by the time the game rolled around, things were just automatic. We just didn't make mistakes.''
Crusan also gives Shula plenty of praise for knowing how to handle players and adjusting his methods to fit the skills of his roster.
"We had some characters on that team, but he allowed us to be individuals,'' he said. "It was his environment, and he controlled it, but he also knew how to do that.
"And he adapted really well to what he had to work with, too. When I was there, we were a running team with (Jim) Kiick and (Mercury) Morris, and no one could stop us. But then, a few years later after they drafted Dan Marino, the Dolphins became a passing team, and they were the best in the league at that, too. That was the genius of Coach Shula.''
Shula is one of only six coaches in NFL history to have coached the same team for 20 or more consecutive seasons. He also worked in the Dolphins' front office after he retired and also had a very successful chain of restaurants. Crusan used to eat at his Shula's Steakhouse in Indianapolis all the time, and still cherishes a picture that he has from there with him and Shula.
"Every minute I ever got to spend with him was something special,'' Crusan said.
Crusan is healthy and enjoying life in Fishers. He will turn 74 in July.
"I'm healthy and doing great. I've lost some weight, which I needed to do, and I feel good,'' he said. "I've done all that concussion testing and CTE stuff, too, and that all turned out great, so life is good.''
