From Western Pennsylvania to gridiron greatness

By Marcus Fertig | Photo by Victor Hilitski

Dave Wannstedt’s football story doesn’t begin under the bright lights of the NFL. It begins in the steel towns of Western Pennsylvania, where football wasn’t just a game; it was a lifeline. “Football was a way out for us,” Wannstedt says. “If we didn’t play, we’d be working in the mills like our fathers.”

Growing up outside Pittsburgh, Wannstedt learned at a young age what hard work meant. He had a passion for football at a young age. “Friday night lights were a huge deal in my town,” Wannstedt recalls. “10,000 people would be at the game.” Earning a scholarship to Pittsburgh to play football meant the world to Wannstedt, an achievement he had always dreamed of.

After playing at Pitt, he was drafted by the Packers and had a stint in the NFL that was cut short by injuries. He returned to Pittsburgh as a grad student and joined the coaching staff under Johnny Majors. Immediately, he was helping guide a team headlined by future Heisman winner Tony Dorsett to a national championship. A great start to his young coaching career.

“Chicago is like a big Pittsburgh.
The people are real. That’s always
mattered to me.”
— Dave Wannstedt

When Jackie Sherrill replaced Majors, he hired a young assistant from Oklahoma named Jimmy Johnson. Dave and Jimmy began a close relationship that went beyond just X’s and O’s. “We became good friends right away and still are to this day. We text every week,” says Wannstedt. The two worked side-by-side at Pitt before Johnson accepted the head coaching job at Oklahoma State and convinced Wannstedt to join him. Wannstedt laughs, recalling, “We had Dan Marino, Jimbo Covert, Ricky Jackson at Pitt. I don’t know how smart it was to leave that roster. But Jimmy got me in the car and off we went to Stillwater.”

It was there that Wannstedt’s aggressive defensive philosophy began to take shape. In the Big 12, going against tough programs like Nebraska and Oklahoma, he had to get creative. Wannstedt built a system based on quickness, movement, and disruption. “We didn’t have the biggest players,” he says. “So we had to come up with something different.”

That aggressive defensive strategy evolved further when Wannstedt joined Johnson at the University of Miami. With Wannstedt as defensive coordinator, the Hurricanes lost just one regular-season game over three years. Their notorious swagger is directly related to their defensive approach. “If you’re gonna act that way, you better back it up,” he says. “And we were good enough to back it up. It gave us an edge.” 

His time in Miami included a national championship, unforgettable rivalries, and a defensive unit that took over college football. It caught the attention of the pros. Don Shula hired him to stay in town and coach linebackers for the Miami Dolphins, but six weeks later, the phone rang again. Jimmy Johnson had been hired as head coach of the Dallas Cowboys and wanted Wannstedt as his defensive coordinator. The decision to join his friend in Dallas was an easy one.

His experience in Dallas saw the highest of highs and the lowest of lows as a football team. The Cowboys went 1–15 in their first season under Johnson and Wannstedt.  In just three years, they were able to turn it around and become Super Bowl champions. Three years later, they were Super Bowl champions. Wannstedt’s defense set a Super Bowl record with nine forced turnovers against Jim Kelly and the Buffalo Bills. His success with the Cowboys earned him a head coaching opportunity with the Chicago Bears.

Being handed the keys to the Chicago Bears in the mid-1990s made Wannstedt one of the most recognizable figures in the city, right alongside Michael Jordan. He guided the Bears to a playoff win in Minnesota and built competitive teams, but the franchise’s window unexpectedly slammed shut when quarterback Erik Kramer suffered a season-ending neck injury.

After Chicago came Miami, where he again joined his friend Jimmy Johnson, this time as an assistant, before eventually taking over as head coach. Over four seasons, the Dolphins became one of the winningest franchises in the league, averaging over ten victories a year.

Wins and losses are not the only parts of coaching that Wannstedt values. What means the most to him are the lessons learned and lives affected. “There are so many life lessons you learn from football at a young age,” he says. I tell my grandkids who play sports, it’s all about being accountable.” To this day, Wannstedt keeps a relationship with countless former players and coaches, “all the rings I got are nice, but what really is lasting is the relationships I’ve made with players and coaches over the years,” he says.

After the NFL, Wannstedt returned to Pitt, this time as a head coach. His time as coach marked a resurgence for the program, which was capped by winning a Big East Championship in 2010. He recruited players like LeSean McCoy and Aaron Donald during his time as Head Coach.

Today, he remains a beloved figure in Chicago media. Wanstead goes on air for FOX Sports, NBC Sports,
and 670 The Score. “Chicago is like a big Pittsburgh,” he says. “The people are real. That’s always mattered
to me.”

Wannstedt has now found a meaningful connection to the Hinsdale area through family and football. His daughter and three grandsons live in the community, and it’s here that he’s been able to connect with the game as well as family by helping coach and reestablish a local grade-school football program at St. Isaac Jogues, where his grandkids are learning the sport. Coaching young athletes reminds him why he fell in love with the sport in the first place. “They’re sponges,” Wannstedt says. “They’re excited, they’re learning, and they’re having fun.” For a coach who has experienced nearly every level of the game, those afternoons on local fields in Hinsdale have become some of the most rewarding moments of his football life.

From humble beginnings in Pennsylvania to football stardom, Dave Wannstedt’s journey is a testament to dedication, resilience, and leadership. Today, his influence continues to impact the sport through his media work and local youth coaching. Dave Wannstedt’s legacy extends far beyond National Championships and Super Bowls; it’s the people he’s inspired that define his true impact.