Professional Bio

A new crusade was officially initiated on January 12, 2001 when Chiefs President Carl Peterson named Dick Vermeil as the ninth head coach in the 45-year history of the franchise. The 2004 season marks the fourth year of the Vermeil era in Kansas City. This highly-respected coach returned to the NFL ranks in Kansas City after taking a one-year football hiatus following his victory in Super Bowl XXXIV with the St. Louis Rams.

“Sooner or later, it was probably going to happen that Carl and I would be back together again, rejoined to initiate a new crusade,” Vermeil said upon accepting his third NFL head coaching post. “Every time we’ve done it, we’ve been successful.”

Successful, indeed.

In their two previous collaborations Peterson and Vermeil unquestionably forged a winning combination. While the teams, the years and the uniforms have changed, the commitment and trust shared by this dynamic football duo has never wavered. Whether it was upsetting #1 ranked Ohio State 23-10 in the Rose Bowl following the ‘75 college season or resurrecting a long-dormant Philadelphia Eagles franchise to claim the ‘80 NFC Championship and a berth in Super Bowl XV, Peterson and Vermeil’s gridiron triumphs have been well-documented.

That strong personal bond and history of past successes easily explains why Vermeil was Peterson’s top choice for the Chiefs head coaching job, not only in 2001, but dating back to ‘89 when Peterson originally came to Kansas City to steer the franchise’s fortunes.

“When I came to the Chiefs over 12 years ago, there was only one individual I wanted to hire as the head coach of the Kansas City Chiefs, Dick Vermeil,” Peterson observed upon hiring Vermeil. “So it is with a great deal of pleasure that after 12 years I have finally been able to accomplish what I set out to do at that time. I’m not concerned about my bias — and I am biased — but I firmly believe that Dick Vermeil is the premier football coach in the entire National Football League.”

Unquestionably one of the finest innovators and motivators the game has ever known, Vermeil’s style has truly stood the test of time. Whether it was coaching championship football and swimming teams as a high school coach in California, re-establishing UCLA as a national collegiate powerhouse, or reaching the highest echelon of the pro profession by coaching a club to a Super Bowl championship, there’s been virtually no challenge Vermeil hasn’t stepped up to during his illustrious career.

Vermeil put the Chiefs back into contention for the NFL’s ultimate prize after guiding Kansas City to a 13-3 record in 2003, marking the club’s first postseason berth since ‘97. The Chiefs began the season with a 9-0 record, becoming the first team in franchise history and just the ninth squad since the AFL-NFL merger to accomplish that feat. In the process, Kansas City also extended its regular season winning streak at Arrowhead Stadium to a franchise-record 13 games as the Chiefs became the first AFC squad to lead the NFL in scoring offense in back-to-back seasons since San Diego in ‘81-82. Among many noteable honors, Vermeil was named Co-Sportsman of the Year by The Sporting News along with Florida Marlins manager Jack McKeon. The NFL Alumni Association inducted Vermeil into its prestigious Order of the Leather Helmet in April of 2004, while the Touchdown Club of New Orleans bestowed the Chiefs head coach with its 2004 Rozelle Award, a pair of honors that recognize substantial contributions to the game of professional football.

No matter the locale, Vermeil has displayed a propensity for getting his teams to perform in his third season in charge of a program. His combined regular and postseason record during the third year of his three NFL coaching stops — Philadelphia (’78), St. Louis (’99) and Kansas City (2003) — is a remarkable 38-15, good for a .717 winning percentage.

In ‘76, Vermeil inherited a Philadelphia squad which hadn’t enjoyed a winning season since ‘66. In season number three with the Eagles in ‘78, he had Philadelphia in the playoffs for the first time since ‘61 with a 9-7 record, earning NFC Coach of the Year honors for his efforts. After leading Philadelphia to a franchise-best 12-4 record in ‘80 and taking the team on a trip to Super Bowl XV, he was named NFL Coach of the Year for the first time, a feat he later repeated with the Rams in ‘99.

After taking a 14-year sabbatical from the coaching profession from ‘83-96, Vermeil returned to the league as President of Football Operations and head coach of the St. Louis Rams on January 22, 1997. Vermeil took over a St. Louis team which had suffered seven consecutive losing seasons and hadn’t been to the postseason since ‘88. In just his third season as head coach of that club in ‘99, he guided the Rams to a 13-3 regular season record and a thrilling 23-16 victory vs. Tennessee in Super Bowl XXXIV. St. Louis contained its opponents to 21 points or less in all 13 of those regular season victories, winning those contests by an average margin of 22.9 points per game.

Nineteen years after winning the NFL Coach of the Year honor for the initial time with the ‘80 Philadelphia Eagles, Vermeil was once again honored as the NFL’s Coach of the Year following the ‘99 season with St. Louis and was a consensus “Coach of the Year” selection among pro football publication and virtually every major event in the country, including Kansas City’s own “101 Banquet.”

Despite losing current Kansas City QB Trent Green to a season-ending injury in the preseason, an former Arena League and NFL Europe quarterback named Kurt Warner emerged to lead St. Louis to the promised land. While Vermeil was the season’s most decorated coach, Warner was the league’s most honored player, taking home the NFL Most Valuable Player and Super Bowl MVP trophies. Just 11 days following that Super Bowl victory, Vermeil announced what would be a short-lived retirement from the Rams on February 1, 2000 and joined the Chiefs less than a year later.

Vermeil etched his name amongst some of the NFL’s coaching elite in 2003, becoming just the fourth head coach in league history to take three different teams to the playoffs, joining Chuck Knox (Rams, Bills and Seahawks), Dan Reeves (Broncos, Giants and Falcons) and Bill Parcells (Giants, Patriots, Jets and Cowboys). He also joined Knox, Reeves and Parcells as just the fourth coach in NFL history to record a 10-victory season with three different teams.

With a 17-10 win at Baltimore (9/28/03), Vermeil became the 31st coach in NFL history to record 100 career victories (regular and postseason). He registered his 100th regular season NFL win in a 27-24 triumph vs. Oakland (11/23/03), making him the 27th coach in NFL history to accomplish that feat. Just one of six active NFL coaches with 100 career regular season victories, only Marty Schottenheimer (165), Parcells (148), Joe Gibbs (124), Mike Holmgren (116) and Bill Cowher (115) own more regular season wins than Vermeil (103).

Vermeil is also just one of four coaches in NFL history to lead two different teams to the “Big Game,” joining the illustrious likes of Parcells (Giants and Patriots), Reeves (Broncos and Falcons) and Don Shula (Colts and Dolphins). Vermeil was granted entry into that prestigious group after leading St. Louis to a win in Super Bowl XXXIV following the ‘99 season. He also guided Philadelphia to an appearance in Super Bowl XV at the conclusion of the ‘80 season. Vermeil is one of just eight active NFL head coaches (Bill Belichick, Brian Billick, Gibbs, Jon Gruden, Holmgren, Parcells and Mike Shanahan) who have guided a club to a Super Bowl victory.

The national respect for Vermeil truly transcends football. In fact, it eclipses the sports world entirely. In addition to his impressive litany of accomplishments as a coach, he has served as a widely-acclaimed broadcaster and has long been a highly-coveted motivational speaker. Yet even though he is just one of 21 NFL head coaches ever to claim a Super Bowl ring — joining Hank Stram as the only other Chiefs head coach to own that distinction — Vermeil approaches the challenge become the only head coach in NFL history to lead three separate teams to the Super Bowl with little bravado and much humility.

Vermeil enters his 14th season as an NFL head coach in 2004, after producing a 103-94 regular season record in his 13 previous campaigns. He went 22-26 with the St. Louis Rams (’97-99), posted a 54-47 record with the Eagles (’76-82) and has produced a 27-21 slate in three seasons with the Chiefs (2001-03). He boasts a 6-5 career postseason record, including a perfect 3-0 mark during the ‘99 campaign with the Rams giving him an overall NFL record of 109-99 (.524). In total, Vermeil will embark on his 18th season as an NFL coach after originally entering the league with the L.A. Rams in ‘69.

In ‘76, Vermeil was named head coach of the Philadelphia Eagles, while Peterson served as the club’s receivers, tight ends coach and administrative assistant to the head coach. The duo of Peterson and Vermeil helped lead the Eagles to their first playoff appearance in 18 seasons in ‘78. In six seasons together with the Eagles from ‘76-81, Peterson and Vermeil combined to engineer four playoff appearances. The highlight of that four-year playoff run came just one year later when Philadelphia claimed its first division title since the club won the NFL Championship in ‘60. The Eagles proceeded to win the ‘80 NFC Championship Game and advanced to Super Bowl XV in January of ‘81.

After spending seven seasons (’76-82) with Philadelphia, Vermeil retired from coaching during an emotional farewell speech on January 10, 1983. He finished his Eagles career as the second-winningest head coach in that franchise’s history, compiling a 54-47 (.535) record. Only Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee Earl “Greasy” Neale produced more victories, getting 66 wins as the Eagles head coach from ‘41-50. In an ironic twist, Vermeil became the first two-time winner of the Earle “Greasy” Neale Award in 2003, an honor presented annually by Philadelphia’s Maxwell Club to the NFL Coach of the Year. He previously received that accolade with the Rams in ‘99.

During his many years in the Philadelphia area — where his family still maintains a residence — Vermeil has found the time to help many worthy causes. Numerous Philadelphia-area organizations have benefited from his involvement including: The Mary Campbell Center, The Second Mile Center and The Boy Scouts of Chester County whose golf tournament which bears Vermeil’s name annually earns $100,000 for the organization.

Shortly after departing the sidelines in Philadelphia, he began a 14-year broadcasting career, serving as an NFL and college football analyst for CBS and ABC from ‘83-96. Although he declined the opportunity to become Kansas City’s head coach in ‘89, he did provide color commentary for the Chiefs preseason television broadcasts from ‘89-96. In addition to being the only head coach to lead his team to victories in both the Super Bowl and the Rose Bowl, he is also the only individual to coach a team in the Rose Bowl and later broadcast a Rose Bowl contest.

Vermeil also owns the rare distinction of being named “Coach of the Year” on four levels: high school, junior college, NCAA Division I and the NFL. He began his coaching career at San Jose’s Del Mar High School in ‘59 and received his initial head coaching assignment at Hillsdale High School in San Mateo, California in ‘60. After a one-year stint as an assistant at San Mateo College, he produced an 8-1 mark in his lone season as the head coach at Napa Junior College. Vermeil began his NCAA Division I coaching tenure at Stanford from ‘65-68 working under head coach John Ralston. That star-studded staff included five other future NFL head coaches: Ralston (Denver ‘72-76); Bill Walsh (San Francisco ‘79-88), Jim Mora (New Orleans ‘86-96, Indianapolis ‘98-01) and Rod Rust (New England ‘90), as well as current Chiefs Director of Football Administration Mike White (Oakland ‘95-96).

Vermeil entered the pro ranks in ‘69 when he was designated as the first special teams coach in NFL history working for the L.A. Rams under Pro Football Hall of Famer George Allen. After a one-year stint on Tommy Prothro’s staff as offensive coordinator at UCLA in ‘70, he moved with Prothro back to the Rams, where he served as offensive coordinator from ‘71-72. He then coached running backs and special teams for Rams head coach Chuck Knox in ‘73 before taking over the head coaching reigns at UCLA the following year. He compiled a 15-5-3 (.717) record in two seasons as head coach at UCLA (’74-75), including a 9-2-1 record in ‘75 when Vermeil led the Bruins to their first Pac 8 Championship.

Personal Bio

Born in Calistoga, California at the northern end of the world-renowned Napa Valley in the heart of wine country, Vermeil was a four-sport star at Calistoga High School and was also employed in the auto repair garage of his father, Louis Vermeil. The younger Vermeil applied that work ethic learned in “The Garage” for one season at Napa Junior College, before moving on to San Jose State. He graduated from San Jose State with degrees in physical education (B.A. ‘58, M.A. ‘59) after serving as a collegiate quarterback for the Spartans. In 2000, he was inducted into the San Jose State Hall of Fame. True to his Napa Valley roots, Vermeil partners with OnTheEdge Winery to produce his own self-proclaimed “Garage Cabernet” named in honor of his grandfather, Jean Louis Vermeil. Vermeil’s great-grandfather — also named Jean Louis Vermeil — once owned the land where the fruit utilized for this Cabernet Sauvignon vintage is grown.

Vermeil and his wife, Carol have three children and 11 grandchildren. Their son Rick and his wife Colleen are parents of grandchildren Kelly, Rick, Michael and Megan. Their son Dave and his wife Janet are parents of grandchildren Jack, Amy and Andy. Their daughter Nancy and her husband Steve Barnett are parents of grandchildren James, Tommy, Stevie and Christopher.

The Vermeils make their home in the historic Country Club Plaza district of Kansas City, Missouri. When not in Kansas City, the entire Vermeil family enjoys spending time and working on “The Ranch,” a 114-acre homestead located outside Philadelphia in rural Chester County, Pennsylvania.