[blitz43]

Yes I realize tha Madden coached my beloved Raiders, if you would've looked closely I said that some of the best coaches never stepped foot on a football field and used him as an example to prove my point. He did lead them to the Super Bowl victory and set up the tradition that ole Al still longs for

"Playing career"
A football standout in high school, he then played junior college football at the College of San Mateo before transferring to California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo, California, where he played both offense and defense. He won all-conference honors at offensive tackle. In addition, he was a catcher on Cal Poly's baseball team. Madden was drafted in the 21st round (244th overall) by the National Football League's Philadelphia Eagles in 1958, but a knee injury in training camp a year later ended his playing career.


"Coaching career"

College
John Madden began his coaching career at Buffalo State College, while he worked on his master's degree at Cal Poly. In 1960, he became an assistant coach at Allan Hancock College and was promoted to head coach in 1962. Following the 1963 season, he was hired as a defensive assistant at San Diego State University, where he served until 1966. During that final campaign, the San Diego State Aztecs were ranked among the top small college teams in the country. While at SDSU, Madden coached under Don Coryell, whom Madden credits as being an influence on his coaching and missing from the Hall of Fame [2].