Chuck Noll died at 82 on Friday night at his home in Sewickley. Noll was the one accredited for building the "Steel Curtain" Pittsburgh Steelers of the 1970s into one of the strongest football teams in history. He was the only NFL coach to win four Super Bowl championships.
His death was confirmed by the Steelers themselves. According to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, he was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease earlier and he had already undergone numerous treatments for his heart ailment and back pains.
It was in 1969 that Noll was made head coach of the Steelers. It was through his coaching prowess, in addition to the noticeable development of the players, that the Steelers were able to reach a league championship game. They were never able to do so ever since the Steelers team was founded in 1933.
Before pursuing a career as a coach, Noll was playing football for the Cleveland Browns as their guard and linebacker.
In the first years of Noll as a coach, the Steelers got to win only one game. However, he went on to coach four other Super Bowl champion teams in a span of only six seasons with the amazing draft picks he got. In just a relatively short time, Noll, together with the team, created the memorable Steel Curtain defense and a high-powered offense.
The Steelers won the Super Bowl of 1974, 1975, 1978, and 1979. They also got nine American Football Conference Central Division championships during his 23 years as their coach. They became one of the NFL's strongest franchises, echoing George Halas' Chicago Bears in the 1940s, Paul Brown's Cleveland Browns in the 1950s, and Vince Lombardi's Green Bay Packers in the 1960s.
It was in 1993 that Noll was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
His last Super Bowl win was in January of 1980, when the Steelers beat the Los Angeles Rams with a score of 31-19.
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