Jim Mora Sr.

James Ernest Mora, born May 24, 1935, spent 15 seasons as an NFL head coach, leading the New Orleans Saints from 1986 to 1996 and the Indianapolis Colts from 1998 to 2001. Before that, he coached the Philadelphia/Baltimore Stars of the original USFL for all three years of its existence, taking the team to every championship game and winning two of them. Mora is known for reviving two chronically losing franchises—the Saints and Colts—turning them into regular playoff contenders.

He became the first coach to give the Saints a winning record and a playoff berth in 1987, their 21st season, which earned him NFL Coach of the Year. His reputation, however, is also marked by a winless postseason record in the NFL and a series of fiery postgame rants. His career winning percentage of .527 is the highest among NFL coaches without a playoff victory. He is the father of former NFL and current college head coach Jim L. Mora.

Mora was born in Glendale, California. He became an Eagle Scout in 1950 and later received the Distinguished Eagle Scout Award from the Boy Scouts of America. At University High School in Los Angeles, he was an all-league end, and he played tight end at Occidental College, where he joined the Alpha Tau Omega fraternity and graduated in 1957. His college roommate was Jack Kemp, a Buffalo Bills quarterback who later served as a U.S. congressman for 18 years and ran for president in 1988. Another teammate, Ron Botchan, became a successful NFL game official.

Mora began his coaching career as an assistant at Occidental in 1960, then became head coach there in 1964, posting an 18–9 record over three seasons. After earning a master’s degree in education in 1967, he left Occidental to be an assistant at Stanford under John Ralston for the 1967 season. He then spent five seasons at Colorado under Eddie Crowder, coaching defensive ends, outside linebackers, and defensive backs; one season at UCLA under Dick Vermeil; and three at Washington under Don James. In 1978, he moved to the NFL as defensive line coach for the Seattle Seahawks under Jack Patera. After four seasons, he joined the New England Patriots in 1982 under Ron Meyer.

In 1983, the USFL launched, and Mora became head coach of the Philadelphia Stars (who moved to Baltimore in 1985). His teams compiled a 48–13–1 record, appeared in all three USFL championship games, and won two. He was named Coach of the Year in 1984 and is widely considered the best coach in the league’s brief history. Six months after the Stars won the 1985 title, Mora was hired by the New Orleans Saints. The USFL later folded after winning only $3 in an antitrust suit against the NFL.

Mora was brought in by new Saints general manager Jim Finks to fix what was long considered the NFL’s most inept franchise. The Saints had won just 90 games in their first 19 seasons, never had a winning record, and only reached .500 twice (1979 and 1983). In his first offseason, Mora overhauled the roster, convincing several USFL players—including some from his Stars—to join him. Key imports were linebackers Sam Mills and Vaughan Johnson, who became the inside duo of the legendary “Dome Patrol” alongside veteran Rickey Jackson and draftee Pat Swilling. He also kept quarterback Bobby Hebert and receiver Eric Martin from the previous regime, and drafted running back Reuben Mayes and tackle Jim Dombrowski.

After a 7–9 first season, Mora led the Saints to a 12–3 record in 1987. In week 6, the Saints lost 24–22 to the San Francisco 49ers after Morten Andersen missed a last-second field goal. Mora then delivered his famous “Coulda, Woulda, Shoulda” speech in the postgame press conference. The team responded by winning its final nine games, securing the franchise’s first winning record and playoff berth. The Saints had the second-best record in the league, but because the 49ers (13–2) were in the same division, New Orleans entered the playoffs as a wild card. They lost their first home playoff game 44–10 to the Minnesota Vikings. Mora was named NFL Coach of the Year.

In 1988, the Saints finished 10–6, tied for first in the NFC West with the 49ers and Los Angeles Rams, but lost the division on tiebreakers and missed the playoffs. In 1989, they went 9–7 but finished third in the division and again missed the postseason. That season featured another memorable tirade, when Mora scolded a sportswriter for not understanding what happens during practice. The Saints made the playoffs three more times under Mora: in 1990, they went 8–8 and lost to the Chicago Bears 16–6 in the wild-card round; in 1991, they won their first division title with an 11–5 record.