Remembering the unbelievable moment when two Black head coaches were in the Super Bowl

In February for Black History Month, USA TODAY Sports is publishing the series 28 Black Stories in 28 Days. We examine the issues, challenges and opportunities Black athletes and sports officials continue to face after the nation’s reckoning on race two years ago.

The issue of the lack of Black head coaches in the NFL is an extremely well documented one. It will be an issue maybe for decades to come.

But once upon a time, in a galaxy far, far away, the Super Bowl featured two Black head coaches.

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That moment is one of the most important in NFL history and it’s something that almost certainly won’t happen again in our lifetimes, if ever.

Take one second to remember it as you watch the big game on Sunday.

Super Bowl XLI, in 2007, featured Tony Dungy’s Colts and Lovie Smith’s Bears. In the week leading up to the game both men embraced the historic nature of the moment. They didn’t shy away from it and answered every question about it with dignity and class.

In the months and years after the game, Dungy reflected on the segregation his father faced, and how far Dungy had come.

“When you think about it – that’s what brought tears to my eyes after we won the Super Bowl,” Dungy said recently. “My dad’s first teaching job was in Arlington, Virginia, and he can’t ride on the bus, he can’t go to certain places, he can’t teach at certain schools. One generation later, we win the Super Bowl and I’m invited by the president to bring our team to the White House. I’m sitting in the first seat, on the first bus, it made me laugh almost. This is what my dad was talking about. Just work, do what you were supposed to do and you’ll make a difference.”

There was also a sense of pride felt by Black players, coaches, team executives and others who for the first time saw someone (in this…