Covering new ground: Dungy at ease with new life after coaching career

CEDAR RAPIDS – Unlike many who reached the pinnacle in pro sports, Tony Dungy has quickly found post-retirement to be as fulfilling and maybe more than his time as a highly successful NFL coach.

Cedar Rapids Washington junior Emily Woods (left) shakes hands with former Indianapolis Colts Coach Tony Dungy during an appearance at the Eastern Iowa Fellowship of Christian Athletes 2009 Home Team Drive & Banquet at the Cedar Rapids Marriott on May 11, 2009. Photo by Jim Slosiarek.

Dungy was never just a football coach in his 13 years of being a head coach in the NFL, 13 years that produced twice as many victories as defeats, and the Super Bowl championship with the Indianapolis Colts in January 2007.

He gradually became one of the more-liked people in sports because he was an “us” person instead of a “me” guy. He brought grace and humility to settings that often seemed devoid of them.

Getting Dungy to speak at its annual banquet here May 11 was a coup for the Eastern Iowa Fellowship of Christian Athletes. Dungy has claimed a Vince Lombardi Trophy, and he’s been a winner in the personal image he has projected over the years.

At 53, Dungy said farewell to football. It wasn’t burnout. It was having other ground to cover, using different ways to reach people.

One has been as an author. Dungy’s book “Quiet Strength” was No. 1 on the New York Times best-seller list for over half of 2008. It has resonated not only with football fans, but with people looking for positives they can latch onto and use in their own situations.

The chapter titles alone say plenty, like “Develop Your Core,” “Love Your Family,” “Lift Your Friends and Others,” “Establish a Mission That Matters,” and “Choose Influence Over Image.”

That book has over a million copies in print. His 2009 follow-up, “Uncommon: Finding Your Path to Significance,” has also done well.

“When we wrote the first book, I thought it would be a good lesson, especially for young men,” Dungy said. “I never, never dreamed it would sell like it did and that I’d have the platform to speak at colleges, universities, business establishments, non-football areas, because of the book.

“I think it’s a book about faith, but it doesn’t come out as just purely a religious book. … I think both books are about living and growing and heading towards goals, and I think both books were really positive, too.

“Our sports editor in Indianapolis said it wouldn’t sell because there wasn’t any dirt in it, there wasn’t anything anybody would be interested in. But I think that’s wrong. I think people do want to read about positives, and I think it came at the right time for that.”

Of course, all messages seem to be heard more clearly when they come from people of accomplishment. Dungy gets his foot in the door with clean-living types and prison inmates alike because he’s been an achiever.

That achieving came from constructing and guiding winning teams. That begins in the NFL draft. And to bring it home, as Dungy did Monday, that included contributions of two prominent former Iowa Hawkeyes.

“We thought that Bob Sanders and Dallas Clark would definitely fit in to our offense and defense just the way they have,” Dungy said.

“They were both specialist-type players. Dallas was a receiving tight end and he wasn’t as big as many people were looking for at tight end. Bob Sanders was a special, special defensive back, but he wasn’t as big as people were looking for.

“We … just felt they would be the best players available when it came time to pick. We also thought they would fit in to how we played, fit into our system.

“One thing we didn’t know for sure was what type of leaders they were. That has been the pleasant surprise. They’re guys who made their teammates better.”

Dungy said he and Colts front-office people have had a lot of chats with Iowa Coach Kirk Ferentz over the last several years.

“We have done a lot of background checks on Iowa guys and had Kirk on the telephone quite a bit,” Dungy said. “He’s a special coach.

“His guys have been great for us, Dallas Clark and Bob Sanders were critical cogs in our team. Both came very, very highly recommended by Kirk.”