About Tony Sparano
Anthony Joseph Sparano III was an American football coach. He served as the head coach of the Miami Dolphins and Oakland Raiders of the National Football League (NFL) and is the only NFL head coach to have led a team to the playoffs the year following a one-win season, and only the second to conduct a 10-game turnaround, both of which Sparano accomplished in his first season with the Dolphins. Sparano was fired by the Dolphins in December 2011 after a 4–9 start to the season, his worst start in his four-year tenure with the team. In his first season, Sparano led the Dolphins to an 11–5 record and the AFC East division title, securing the franchise's first playoff berth in seven seasons before losing to the Baltimore Ravens in a wild-card game. In the 2009 and 2010 seasons, Sparano led the Dolphins to a 7–9 record and third place in the AFC East. In 1997, New Haven led Division II in offense (42.8 points per game) and finished second in defense (11.6 points allowed per game) en route to a 12–2 record, losing to Northern Colorado in the championship game. Sparano is the first head coach to win a division title in their first season as head coach.
Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.