Two-time Super Bowl champion Mike Kolen dies aged 76 as tributes flood in for NFL icon
Auburn University have confirmed the passing of Mike Kolen, who won two Super Bowls in his playing career.
Kolen played eight seasons for the Miami Dolphins after being drafted in the 12th round of the 1970 NFL Draft and won back-to-back Super Bowls with them in 1972 and 1973.
Nicknamed ‘Captain Crunch’ due to his tough-tackling style, Kolen went down in history in Alabama.
He returned to Auburn each year to present the ‘Mike Kolen Award’ for the university’s leading tackler from the previous season.
News of Kolen’s death led to an outpouring of tributes online to the Auburn legend.
Alabama Sports Hall of Fame tweeted: “We mourn the passing of 1985 Inductee Mike Kolen.
“Kolen was the leading tackler in 16 of 25 games that he started in at Auburn University from 1967-1969.
“Kolen was one of the toughest linebackers in the “no-name defense” of the Miami Dolphins for eight years.”
Another message read: “Legendary player, but more importantly a great man. #MikeKolen #CaptainCrunch”
A third person wrote: “A sad day for the Auburn family! RIP Captain Crunch.”
One other said: “Sorry to hear the news. He was one of the best to ever play the position at AUBURN.”
Former Auburn athletics director and sports information director David Housel also paid a touching tribute to Kolen.
“Mike Kolen is one of the finest men I’ve ever known,” he said.
“Being a football player was secondary to Mike Kolen. He’s one of the greatest football players Auburn ever had, but he was much more. A rock, a beacon.
“When I think of Mike Kolen, I think of toughness, competitiveness, and a quality of goodness. He was a great football player but he was a better man.
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He added: “His teammates never heard him cuss.
“That day at Legion Field, they were about to leave the dressing room he said, ‘All right, guys. Let’s go out there and beat the hell out of them.’
“The players say that really got them fired up because when Mike Kolen was fired up enough to say that, they knew he was serious. It gave all of them a spark.”