Last year, Mike Ditka, a former American football player, coach, and television commentator, celebrated his 85th birthday. Mike Ditka is a living NFL legend, especially in the city of Chicago where he coached Da Bears to their only Super Bowl victory, but did you know he is of Ukrainian descent?
Super Bowl : Pinnacle of American Sports
Much was written about American football as a cult aspect of American life. It is a sport involving the most significant money, with a whole side industry of its media, goods, and events.
Everyone knows about the Super Bowl, the USA’s most important social and cultural event. It is a game in which the National Football League (NFL) championship title is played.
Many people also go in for sports betting, which can be closely related to problem gambling. So, it’s necessary to be aware of the responsible gambling practices. In case of any issues, it’s advised to address Gam-Anon or any similar organization for support.
The Super Bowl, which has been held since 1967, has the most expensive television advertising, and the world’s biggest pop stars perform during the break.
The Super Bowl is the World Championship of American-style football, and each such match is marked with a Roman numeral of the serial number—like kings or Popes.
The most recent was Super Bowl LIX was held on February 9 in New Orleans, and someone who knows American football will competently discuss it at the Champion.
Mike Ditka - Da Caoch
Mike Ditka played for three NFL teams:
- The Chicago Bears (1961–1966),
- The Philadelphia Eagles (1967–1968), and
- The Dallas Cowboys (1969–1972).
After his playing career, he coached the Dallas Cowboys (assistant head coach, 1973–1981), the Chicago Bears (head coach, 1982–1992), and the New Orleans Saints (1997–1999).
His achievements are impressive. As a player, he won Super Bowl VI (1971) and the NFL championship (1963), participated in the Pro Bowl (NFL all-star games) five times, and was recognized as the best rookie offensive player in the NFL (1961), posting a record-breaking 56 catches for 1,076 yards and 12 touchdowns.
The Chicago Bears and the Pittsburgh Panthers (for which he played in college) retired the jersey with the number 89 in his honor.
He made 427 receptions for 5812 yards and 43 touchdowns during his career.
As a coach, he won two Super Bowls (XII, XX), the first as an assistant on the Dallas Cowboys and the second as the head coach of the Chicag Bears. He was also twice recognized as the best NFL coach (1985, 1988).
Mike Ditka is one of only two people to have won NFL championships as a player, assistant coach, and head coach.
The other was Tom Flores. Ditka, Flores, Gary Kubiak, and Doug Pederson are the only people in modern NFL history to have won championships as head coaches of teams they previously played for.
In 1988, Ditka was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame as the first tight end (a player who can catch the ball but is also big and strong enough to block). He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1986.
Da Coach was named to the NFL 100 All-Time roster as a tight end during the NFL’s 100 Anniversary celebration.
Ditka's Early Years
Mike Keller Ditka was born on October 18, 1939, in the suburb of industrial Pittsburgh (Pennsylvania), Carnegie.
Born Michael Dyczko—because his father, also Michael (Mykhailo), was a Ukrainian immigrant from Poland. The Polish trace is evidenced by the spelling of the surname Dyczko, which was changed to the more familiar Ditka for Americans.
Mike’s mother Charlotte Keller is of German-Irish descent. Mike is the eldest of four children under guns: he had brothers Ashton and David and sister Mary Ann.
His father worked as a welder.
Ditka grew up in Aliquippa, another suburb of Pittsburgh, where he graduated from the only high school in the city. There, he was a star in three sports at once: baseball, basketball, and American football.
The school team doctor, John Miller, encouraged Mike to take up football. The boy saw the prospect of escaping the fate of a worker in Pittsburgh factories by entering college on a football scholarship.
After playing three years for the University of Pittsburgh team (1958–1960), the Chicago Bears selected him in the 1961 draft at number five.
In his first season, Ditka caught the ball 56 times, which was a novelty, since previously tight ends had mainly blocked. He also had 12 receiving touchdowns. He was named Rookie of the Year.
Mike played for the Bears for the next five years, earning a Pro Bowl selection every season. In 1963, he and his team won the NFL championship, before the Super Bowl era.
Actor, businessman, Trumpist
After completing his actual sports career, Mike Ditka was highly active as a television personality, wrote books, played in TV and film films, and was engaged in various businesses. He released his brands of wine, cigars, and sausages. He participated in the creation of computer games and commercials.
He is also known for his political views, which he describes as “ultra-ultra-ultraconservative”.
In 2004, while living in Chicago, Mike Ditka intended to run for the Illinois Senate as a Republican. His Democratic opponent was Barack Obama. However, under the influence of his wife, he changed his mind and focused on the restaurant business.
Obama then defeated Republican candidate Alan Case and began his political rise to the top. He became president.
Ditka called Obama the worst president in US history and regretted that he did not run for office in 2004—because, he said, he would have won.
From the beginning of Donald Trump’s political career, Mike was his ardent supporter, actively supporting him in the last presidential election. In other words, Mike Ditka won again.