Tony Dungy of the AFC's Indianapolis Colts and Lovie Smith of the NFC's Chicago Bears will be on opposing sidelines in the Super Bowl, but for reasons that transcend those roles and even their warm personal relationship, they will be entwined forever in NFL history.
As the first African-American head coaches to reach the Super Bowl, they will be remembered for attaining a place in their mutual journey that many regard as much a challenging beginning as a triumphant conclusion. It was only in 1989 that the Los Angeles Raiders made Art Shell the first African-American coach in the league's modern era.
"I think it's an important hurdle to get over, but not one that changes any essential dynamic," said pioneering sports sociologist Harry Edwards of the Super Bowl benchmark. "It's not a panacea," he added. "We can't relax and say, `Look, we figured it out.' "
In a serendipitous twist, the most recently hired NFL head coach is Mike Tomlin, who becomes the first African-American to lead the Pittsburgh Steelers. Tomlin, who was the Minnesota Vikings' defensive coordinator, is one of several current head coaches who once worked for Dungy with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Although Tomlin becomes the NFL's sixth current African-American head coach, that number is still below the seven who started the season. Oakland's Shell, in his second coaching stint with the Raiders, and the Arizona Cardinals' Dennis Green were fired earlier. Two NFL coaching vacancies remain, the Raiders and the Dallas Cowboys, after yesterday's resignation of Bill Parcells.
For the moment, though, the spotlight is on Dungy and Smith.
"This should be celebrated [because] they both reached the pinnacle of their careers," said Antwaine Smith, a former high school football star at Poly and Northeastern University who heads the Baltimore branch of that college's Center for the Study of Sport in Society. "And they're excellent role models for black youth because they've put in the work, time and effort to be the best in their field."
But echoing Edwards, he added, "We have so much work to do. I hope it doesn't give people a false sense of security as far as minorities in sports."
In the glow of their respective wins Sunday, both Dungy, 51, and Lovie Smith, 48, acknowledged the milestone without letting it overshadow their respective teams' accomplishments.
"I'm very, very proud as an African-American," Dungy said after the game. "It's going to be special, but I want to really just let us savor this and make this about the Colts."
