Richard Charles Nolan (March 26, 1932 – November 11, 2007) was an American professional
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...
player and coach in the
National Football League
The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...
(NFL). He served as the head coach of the
San Francisco 49ers
The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners and nicknamed the Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member ...
and
New Orleans Saints
The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans. The Saints compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. Since 1975, the team ...
.
Early life and college
In his youth, Nolan was the starting
quarterback
The quarterback (QB) is a position in gridiron football who are members of the offensive side of the ball and mostly line up directly behind the Lineman (football), offensive line. In modern American football, the quarterback is usually consider ...
at
White Plains High School. He accepted a scholarship from the
University of Maryland
The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1856, UMD is the flagship institution of the Univ ...
, where he was converted to
running back
A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive American football plays#Offensive terminology, handoffs from the quarterback to Rush (American football)#Offense ...
and
safety
Safety is the state of being protected from harm or other danger. Safety can also refer to the control of recognized hazards in order to achieve an acceptable level of risk.
Meanings
The word 'safety' entered the English language in the 1 ...
. He received honorable-mention
All-American
The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...
honors as a senior.
He was a key contributor to the school's 1953 championship team.
Professional career
In the NFL, he played for a total of nine seasons (1954–62) in the
defensive halfback
The halfback in Canadian football, and most commonly the Canadian Football League, currently refers to the defensive back rather than the running back, as in American football. The defensive halfback lines up inside covering the slotback. They a ...
,
safety
Safety is the state of being protected from harm or other danger. Safety can also refer to the control of recognized hazards in order to achieve an acceptable level of risk.
Meanings
The word 'safety' entered the English language in the 1 ...
, and
defensive back
In gridiron football, defensive backs (DBs), also called the secondary, are the players on the defensive side of the ball who play farthest back from the line of scrimmage. They are distinguished from the other two sets of defensive players, the ...
positions. He was
selected in the fourth round (41st overall) of the
1954 NFL draft by the
New York Giants
The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The ...
. On May 10, 1958, he was traded to the
Chicago Cardinals
The professional American football team now known as the Arizona Cardinals previously played in Chicago, Illinois, as the Chicago Cardinals from 1898 to 1959 before relocating to St. Louis, Missouri, for the 1960 through 1987 seasons.
Roots ca ...
. He returned to the Giants in 1959.
On April 27,
1962
The year saw the Cuban Missile Crisis, which is often considered the closest the world came to a Nuclear warfare, nuclear confrontation during the Cold War.
Events January
* January 1 – Samoa, Western Samoa becomes independent from Ne ...
, he was traded to the
Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. T ...
in a three-team deal, with the
Green Bay Packers
The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. They ar ...
acquiring kicking specialist
Allen Green and the Giants obtaining a draft pick from the Packers. He reunited with former teammate
Tom Landry, who used Nolan as a "player-coach". When Nolan was injured halfway through his first season, he became the Cowboys' defensive coordinator.
Coaching career
Nolan was on the Cowboys' staff for six years, the last year being the season in which the Cowboys played in the
Ice Bowl. Landry came up with the "flex defense", a 3-4 alignment that Nolan would utilize for his head coaching career.
On January 19, 1968, he was hired as head coach of the
San Francisco 49ers
The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners and nicknamed the Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member ...
.
With a focus on defense that featured future Hall of Famer
Dave Wilcox alongside
Skip Vanderbundt and defensive end
Cedrick Hardman to go with a line ready to protect quarterback
John Brodie, the Niners soon became a threat in the NFC. He would coach there for eight seasons from 1968 through 1975, noted for developing the defense and taking the team to three straight
NFC West
The National Football Conference – Western Division or NFC West is one of the four Division (sport), divisions of the National Football Conference (NFC) in the National Football League (NFL). It currently has four members: the Arizona Card ...
division titles (1970–72), twice missing the Super Bowl by only one game (1970–71). The playoff victory over Minnesota in 1970 was the first playoff win for the 49ers since 1949. Brodie was named MVP after the 1970 season, the first player to win the award in team history.
Nolan was hired to coach the linebackers for the
New Orleans Saints
The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans. The Saints compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. Since 1975, the team ...
in 1977. When
Hank Stram was fired at the end of the season, Nolan was promoted to head coach on February 6, 1978, becoming the 6th head coach in the twelfth season of the franchise. He coached the Saints from 1978–80 going 15–29. He was the first Saints head coach to win more than five games in a season. They went 7–9 in 1978, with quarterback
Archie Manning
Elisha Archibald Manning III (born May 19, 1949) is an American former professional football player who was a quarterback in the National Football League (NFL) for 14 seasons, primarily with the New Orleans Saints from 1971 to 1982. He also h ...
having his first Pro Bowl selection on the strength of his first 3,000 yard season as a pro. With three games to go in the 1979 season, the Saints were tied for first in the NFC West with Los Angeles at 7–6, having gone from 0–3 to winning seven of the next ten. They cratered from there, with a 35–14 lead versus the Oakland Raiders at home unraveling into a 42–35 loss (with 21 coming in the final quarter). They lost the following week to San Diego before a victory over the Rams had them finishing 8–8, which was their first .500 season in team history. They had five Pro Bowl selections, most notably with Manning,
Chuck Muncie, and
Wes Chandler. Nolan was fired by the Saints in 1980 after an 0–12 start on November 26, a season that saw
Chuck Muncie traded four weeks in. His last game was on November 24 of that season, a 27–7 loss to the
Los Angeles Rams
The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Greater Los Angeles, Greater Los Angeles area. The Rams compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West ...
on ''
Monday Night Football
''Monday Night Football'' (often abbreviated as ''MNF'') is the branding used for broadcasts of National Football League (NFL) games that air on Monday nights. It originally ran on American Broadcasting Company, ABC from 1970 NFL season, 1970 t ...
'' at home, where fans took to throwing paper airplanes. Upon the dismissal, GM
Steve Rosenbloom stated Nolan was "a man of character, class and dignity." The Saints finished the 1980 season 1–15, as interim coach
Dick Stanfel won only one of his four games, a 21–20 victory over the
New York Jets
The New York Jets are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Jets compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The team p ...
in week 15.
His alma mater, the
University of Maryland, College Park
The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1856, UMD i ...
, interviewed Nolan for the head coach vacancy created when
Jerry Claiborne left for Kentucky, but ultimately, chose
Bobby Ross, instead.
Nolan holds the dubious distinction of being the head coach of the
Arena Football League
The Arena Football League (AFL) was a professional arena football league in the United States. It was founded in 1986, but played its first official games in the 1987 Arena Football League season, 1987 season, making it the third longest-runnin ...
's
San Antonio Force in 1992, the only team in Arena history to be shut out, 50–0 by the
Orlando Predators on June 13, 1992.
Nolan was well known for wearing
business suits while coaching, as did many other coaches during his era. The NFL has since disallowed this practice in most circumstances due to the league signing exclusive apparel deals with sportswear companies (specifically
Reebok and
Nike). The league made an exception after Nolan's death in 2007, allowing Nolan's son
Mike, coach of the
San Francisco 49ers
The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners and nicknamed the Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member ...
and
Jack Del Rio, coach of the
Jacksonville Jaguars
The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida. The Jaguars compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. The team ...
, to wear suits in the elder Nolan's honor.
Head coaching record
References
External links
NFL.com player page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nolan, Dick
1932 births
2007 deaths
American football safeties
Chicago Cardinals players
Dallas Cowboys coaches
Dallas Cowboys players
Denver Broncos coaches
Houston Oilers coaches
Maryland Terrapins football players
New Orleans Saints coaches
New Orleans Saints head coaches
New York Giants players
San Francisco 49ers head coaches
Arena Football League coaches
NFL defensive coordinators
Players of American football from White Plains, New York
Players of American football from Westchester County, New York
White Plains High School alumni
Players of American football from Pittsburgh
Phi Delta Theta members
NFL Coach of the Year winners