As the Miami Dolphins community mourns the loss of legendary coach Don Shula, many in the sports world have been quick to step forward and share their experiences with Shula. Many are poignant. For others, the stories are sentimental. Dolphins legend Larry Csonka? One of his stories about Shula is a little different.
During the Miami Dolphins glory days in the early 1970s, Shula molded the Dolphins from an a lowly squad and into a group of hard nosed, disciplined players. But that didn’t mean there wasn’t give and take. Csonka, for example, had a key role in pranking Shula during training camp — but putting a live alligator in Shula’s shower in the locker room.
Csonka recalled the story yesterday upon the news breaking that Shula had passed.
Larry Csonka recalls the classic story of Dolphins players leaving a baby gator they caught (about 2 1/2-3 feet long) and put in Coach Shula’s shower at camp. pic.twitter.com/s3Ay8TZzvu
— Will Manso (@WillManso) May 4, 2020
Csonka’s story serves as a reminder that while Shula did preside over the Dolphins with a strong disciplinarian tone, he wasn’t a stiff and he still had strong relationships with his players — to allow an environment in which the players and Shula could have these kinds of hilarious exchanges. It showed in the results, too — Shula’s Dolphins were 57-12-1 and played in three Super Bowls (winning two) in Shula’s first five seasons in Miami.
With the news of Shula’s passing still so new, we will undoubtedly hear a slew of stories just like this one from Csonka in the coming days.