Michael Anthony Munchak (born March 5, 1960) is an American professional
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
coach and former player. A graduate of
Penn State #Redirect Pennsylvania State University
The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with campu ...
, Munchak played
left guard
In gridiron football, a guard (G), otherwise known as an offensive guard (OG), is a player who lines up between the center and the tackles on the offensive line of a football team on the line of scrimmage used primarily for blocking. Right g ...
for the
Houston Oilers
The Houston Oilers were a professional American football team that played in Houston from its founding in 1960 to 1996 before relocating to Memphis, and later Nashville, Tennessee becoming the Tennessee Titans. The Oilers began play in 1960 as ...
from
1982
Events January
* January 1 – In Malaysia and Singapore, clocks are adjusted to the same time zone, UTC+8 (GMT+8.00).
* January 13 – Air Florida Flight 90 crashes shortly after takeoff into the 14th Street bridges, 14th Street Bridge in ...
until
1993
File:1993 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Oslo I Accord is signed in an attempt to resolve the Israeli–Palestinian conflict; The Russian White House is shelled during the 1993 Russian constitutional crisis; Czechoslovakia is peace ...
and was a nine-time selection to the
Pro Bowl
The National Football League All-Star Game (1939–1942), Pro Bowl (1951–2022), or Pro Bowl Games (starting in 2023) is an annual event held by the National Football League (NFL) featuring the league's star players.
The format has changed thro ...
. He was inducted into the
Pro Football Hall of Fame
The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame for professional American football, located in Canton, Ohio. Opened on September 7, , the Hall of Fame enshrines exceptional figures in the sport of professional football, including players, coach ...
in 2001.
After his retirement, Munchak continued his association with the Houston franchise by becoming an
assistant coach
A sports coach is a person coaching in sport, involved in the direction, instruction and training of a sports team or athlete.
History
The original sense of the word ''coach'' is that of a Coach (carriage), horse-drawn carriage, deriving ultima ...
. He joined the staff in
1994
File:1994 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1994 Winter Olympics are held in Lillehammer, Norway; The Kaiser Permanente building after the 1994 Northridge earthquake; A model of the MS Estonia, which Sinking of the MS Estonia, sank in ...
as an offensive assistant and quality control coach and stayed with the franchise after it moved to Tennessee and became known as the
Tennessee Titans
The Tennessee Titans are a professional American football team based in Nashville, Tennessee. The Titans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) South division, and play their h ...
, eventually becoming its offensive line coach in
1997
File:1997 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The movie set of ''Titanic'', the highest-grossing movie in history at the time; ''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'', is published; Comet Hale-Bopp passes by Earth and becomes one of t ...
and serving in that position for 14 years.
Munchak became the Titans' head coach in
2011
File:2011 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: a protester partaking in Occupy Wall Street heralds the beginning of the Occupy movement; protests against Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who was killed that October; a young man celebrate ...
but was fired after the
2013 season, ending his 31-year association with the franchise. He served as offensive line coach for the
Pittsburgh Steelers
The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. Founded in , the Steel ...
for five years before becoming the offensive line coach for the Broncos.
College career
Munchak was an offensive lineman for Penn State from 1978–1981. During this time he was a starter for the
1979
Events
January
* January 1
** United Nations Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim heralds the start of the ''International Year of the Child''. Many musicians donate to the ''Music for UNICEF Concert'' fund, among them ABBA, who write the song ...
and
1981
Events January
* January 1
** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union.
** Palau becomes a self-governing territory.
* January 10 – Salvadoran Civil War: The FMLN launches its first major offensiv ...
seasons; however, he missed the
1980 season due to a knee injury. During his senior year, he was named a second-team All-American and was subsequently drafted 8th overall by the Houston Oilers.
Playing career
During the
1982 NFL Draft
The 1982 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 27–28, 1982, at the New York She ...
, Munchak was chosen as the
Houston Oilers' first round draft pick (8th overall), making him the first offensive lineman drafted that year. In his rookie season, he quickly earned a starting position at the left guard position. He remained in that position for 12 seasons. During that time he garnered nine
Pro Bowl
The National Football League All-Star Game (1939–1942), Pro Bowl (1951–2022), or Pro Bowl Games (starting in 2023) is an annual event held by the National Football League (NFL) featuring the league's star players.
The format has changed thro ...
nominations, twice first-team
All-Pro
All-Pro is an honor bestowed upon professional American football players that designates the best player at each position during a given season. All-Pro players are typically selected by press organizations, who select an "All-Pro team," a list th ...
, seven All-AFC, and six second-team All-Pro selections. In addition, he was selected for the
1980s All-Decade Team. Munchak's 12-year tenure tied for second most seasons played with the Houston Oilers.
Coaching career
Houston / Tennessee Oilers / Titans
In 1994, only one year after retiring as a player, Munchak joined the Houston Oilers staff as an offensive assistant/quality control coach. In
1997
File:1997 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The movie set of ''Titanic'', the highest-grossing movie in history at the time; ''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'', is published; Comet Hale-Bopp passes by Earth and becomes one of t ...
Munchak was named offensive line coach of the newly relocated Tennessee Oilers, a position he held for the next fourteen seasons. Following
Jeff Fisher
Jeffrey Michael Fisher (born February 25, 1958) is an American football coach who is the head coach and general manager for the Michigan Panthers of the United States Football League (USFL). He is a former cornerback and return specialist. He ...
's departure as head coach, Munchak was named head coach of the Titans on February 7, 2011. The
2011 season marked his 30th season with the organization. The
2013 season, Munchak's third as head coach, yielded a record of 7–9. That offseason, franchise CEO Tommy Smith and general manager
Ruston Webster
Ruston Rials Webster (born September 30, 1962) is an American football scout for the Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League (NFL). He previously served as general manager of the Tennessee Titans. During his time with the Seattle Seahawk ...
requested that Munchak replace at least six assistant coaches. Munchak disagreed with some of these requests and refused to fully enact those changes in his staff. Munchak was consequently relieved of his position on January 4, 2014.
Pittsburgh Steelers
The 2014 season marked the first season since 1982 that Munchak had no involvement (as a player or coach) with the Oilers/Titans franchise. Munchak eventually became the offensive line coach for the
Pittsburgh Steelers
The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. Founded in , the Steel ...
. In a
2015 NFL playoff game against the
Cincinnati Bengals
The Cincinnati Bengals are a professional American football team based in Cincinnati. The Bengals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The c ...
, Munchak yanked Bengals player
Reggie Nelson
Reggie Lee Nelson (born September 21, 1983) is a former American football safety. He played college football for the University of Florida, where he was a member of a national championship team and earned consensus All-American honors. He wa ...
's hair, drawing a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty. He was subsequently issued a $10,000 fine by the NFL for the incident that was later rescinded after it was determined that the incident was inadvertent.
Denver Broncos
After being a finalist for the Denver Broncos' head coach position, the Broncos hired Munchak to be their offensive line coach on January 14, 2019. Munchak missed the team's week 8 game in 2020 against the
Los Angeles Chargers
The Los Angeles Chargers are a professional American football team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Chargers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) West division, and ...
due to
COVID-19
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...
protocols. On February 2, 2022, it was announced that the Broncos would be parting ways with Munchak.
Head coaching record
Honors
Munchak was elected to the
Pro Football Hall of Fame
The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame for professional American football, located in Canton, Ohio. Opened on September 7, , the Hall of Fame enshrines exceptional figures in the sport of professional football, including players, coach ...
in 2001, along with
Nick Buoniconti
Nicholas Anthony Buoniconti (December 15, 1940 – July 30, 2019) was an American professional football player who was a middle linebacker in the American Football League (AFL) and National Football League (NFL). He played for the Boston Patriot ...
,
Marv Levy
Marvin Daniel Levy (; born August 3, 1925) is an American former football coach and executive who was a head coach in the National Football League (NFL) for seventeen seasons. He spent most of his head coaching career with the Buffalo Bills, lea ...
,
Jackie Slater,
Lynn Swann
Lynn Curtis Swann (born March 7, 1952) is an American former football player, broadcaster, politician, and athletic director, best known for his association with the University of Southern California and the Pittsburgh Steelers. He served on the ...
,
Ron Yary
Anthony Ronald Yary (born July 16, 1946) is an American former professional football player who played as an offensive tackle primarily for the Minnesota Vikings and also for the Los Angeles Rams in the National Football League (NFL). He was ...
, and
Jack Youngblood
Herbert Jackson Youngblood III (born January 26, 1950) is an American former professional football player who was a defensive end for the Los Angeles Rams of the National Football League (NFL) for fourteen seasons during the 1970s and 1980s. He ...
.
In June 2003, Munchak was inducted into the National Polish American Sports Hall of Fame.
The street in front of
Scranton High School is named for Munchak.
The
United Way
United Way is an international network of over 1,800 local nonprofit fundraising affiliates. United Way was the largest nonprofit organization in the United States by donations from the public, prior to 2016.
United Way organizations raise funds ...
of
Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania
Lackawanna County (; unm, Lèkaohane) is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. It is located in Northeastern Pennsylvania and had a population of 215,896 as of the 2020 census. Its county seat and largest city is Scranton.
The county ...
has a charity golf tournament named after Munchak. Each year the tournament is held the last week of June at The Country Club of Scranton in
Clarks Summit, Pennsylvania
Clarks Summit is a borough in Lackawanna County, northwest of Scranton in Northeastern Pennsylvania. The population was 5,108 at the 2020 census. It is also the northern terminus of the Pennsylvania Turnpike Northeast Extension, I-476.
History
T ...
.
Personal life
Munchak and his wife, Marci, have two daughters, Alex and Julie.
References
External links
Pittsburgh Steelers bioTennessee Titans bio*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Munchak, Mike
1960 births
Living people
American football offensive guards
Houston Oilers coaches
Houston Oilers players
Tennessee Titans coaches
Tennessee Titans head coaches
Pittsburgh Steelers coaches
Denver Broncos coaches
Penn State Nittany Lions football players
American Conference Pro Bowl players
Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees
Sportspeople from Scranton, Pennsylvania
Players of American football from Pennsylvania
American people of Polish descent
National Football League players with retired numbers
Ed Block Courage Award recipients