His quarterback has long been the face of the NFL. His team
is still the reigning Super Bowl champions. For years, he has best been known
for his humility, grace, honesty and spirituality. And this past summer, his
book, “Quiet Strength,” debuted on the New
York Times bestsellers list at No. 2 and quickly climbed to the top spot a
week later.
Tony Dungy is a national
figure, have no doubt. But it’s not just the fact that Dungy is the head coach
of the Indianapolis Colts – his climb to the highest of praises comes from the
fact that Dungy balances a well-rounded lifestyle along with his prolific
coaching gig. He’s much more than a football coach, which the residents of this
state know all too well by now.
Which brings us to the story of Dungy’s personal involvement
with the Family First organization, and more specifically, the organization’s
arm of All Pro Dad. To be honest, I hadn’t the slightest idea what this was
until my research for the Dec. issue feature story began in late October.
Having Dungy’s presence in our magazine started as a bit of
a joke. I’ll never forget, our CEO and Publisher, Phil Temple, walked into the office one day and said something to
the effect of, “I just told this guy that we’re putting Tony Dungy on our
cover.”
That was it, that’s all he said. And not long after, I found
out “this guy” was a gentleman by the name of Darrin Gray who works with Family First. Phil had met with Darrin
as an introduction to our publication, and what came of it was the opportunity
to profile and highlight a true family organization with a spokesman whose name
and reputation are much bigger than the man himself. Dungy is a class act, but
he certainly doesn’t look at himself as any type of saint. He’s humble, to say
the least.
In the start of the process, as the idea and possibility of
doing this story came within reach, I sat down with colleague Brian Moore to write down some possible
questions one of us would ask Dungy if given the opportunity. At this point we
didn’t even know which one of us would write it, but Gray wanted to see the
direction of the interview before he granted its permission. Sure enough, there
were several ways to make the story relevant to our wide audience…and there
wasn’t a better fit than our continuous monthly series on community service.
Long story short, I ended up being the one assigned to the
story – almost by default. It was just the way each of our knowledge and
background contributed to which stories we would write that month, as Brian had
familiarity with Franklin Community
High School which made him the best
fit for the “Franklin's Foundation” piece in the same issue.
So off I went on Nov. 3, headed for the Colts practice
complex for the annual Father and Kids Experience and most importantly, to
interview Dungy and others for the story.
Personally, I have quickly discarded any “star-struck”
qualities that we call have as kids and teenagers. What you have to learn is
that, especially with a man like Dungy, they’re just people. They happen to
have a high profile job and Dungy is quite good at his profession, but he has a
heart, head, eyes and smile just like the rest of us. He goes home every night
to a wife and kids…and still has to take out the garbage (yeah, he really told
me this).
Prior to doing this story, I have had the opportunity to
interview the likes of John Wooden, Bobby Knight, Greg Oden and others. It’s what comes with the job, and I certainly
appreciate and realize that. It’s one reason why going into sportswriting is,
frankly, pretty cool. If this is work, then I’m OK with it.
Upon arrival to the practice facility, I was directed into a
film room that was set up for VIP guests to line up for a photo and hand shake
with Dungy. I’m guessing it wasn’t Dungy’s first time in this situation. So I
sat and patiently waited, interviewing punter Hunter Smith in the meantime (who, not mistakenly, is also a class
act). Then the photos were over, and Darrin kindly introduced me to Dungy.
The setting was quite casual really, which was perfect. If
you know me, you know I have more of a laid-back personality.
“This is pretty hectic out here today,” I said.
All he could do was laugh, out loud.
“What was your inkling when you first got involved with All
Pro Dad? Did you ever imagine this?” I said to follow my first statement.
Dungy laughed again and said, “We never thought it would get to this point.”
So the interview went on, talking about why he first got
involved with All Pro Dad and why he’s still involved with it. We talked about
his family, his schedule, his father-like role as a coach and the constant
challenge for him to keep good balance in his life.
This shouldn’t come as a surprise, but Dungy is simply just
a well-spoken man. It was comforting to notice how he intently listened and
made eye contact with each question I asked, seeming genuinely interested in
the depth and focus of the question. With a guy like that, fulfilling interview
requests the better part of his life, I would almost expect the opposite. But
not from a man with his character.
Although I neglected to tell him that I wished he lost the
Super Bowl (nothing personal, I was just born and raised a Bears fan…gulp), I
did wish him the best of luck in the following day’s game against the New
England Patriots. His mind couldn’t have been further from that game.
While local sports radio stations, TV stations and
newspapers – not to mention the ESPN hype machine – were busy breaking down “the
biggest regular season game in NFL history,” Dungy was at the complex to spend
time with local fathers and their kids. Sending his message of the positive
impact a father can have with his children was the focus that day. Not the
Patriots.
In hearing Dungy address the crowd at the event, it made me
realize a few things. The people of Indiana
should be forever grateful to have a figure like Dungy for their kids to look
up to. With events like this, Dungy makes himself visible and available to the fans…and
that is partly why the Colts have become so popular the past 8-10 years. He is
the coach of this town’s NFL team, but he’s also an active member of the
community and uses his notoriety to teach locals some valuable lessons.
“It’s very intense at work and you’re in a very public
setting when you’re with the Colts,” Dungy explains to me, talking about keeping
family a priority. “You have to flip the switch and say, ‘Now I’m back at home,
I’m just Dad and doing what needs to be done whether it’s taking out the
garbage or driving my kids to school.’ That’s the real thing I try to do, just
be as normal as I can.”
He’s a normal guy, but he’s far from average.
(Editor's note: To find out more information on how to get involved with All Pro Dad, visit www.allprodad.com. To read the full story on Dungy and the local high school ties to the organization, see p. 40 of the December issue.)
Here we are, winding down another sports season. 
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