Mike Singletary Michael " Mike " Singletary ( born October 9 , 1958 ) is an American football coach and former professional football player . After playing college football for the Baylor Bears , Singletary was drafted by the Chicago Bears in the 2nd round of the 1981 NFL Draft and was known as " The Heart of the Defense " for the Chicago Bears ' Monsters of the Midway in the mid - 1980s . He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1998 . Singletary later pursued a career as a coach , first as a linebackers coach for the Baltimore Ravens , then as the linebackers coach for the San Francisco 49ers . In 2008 , the 49ers promoted Singletary to the head coaching position after previous head coach Mike Nolan was fired during the season and he remained in that position until the conclusion of the 2010 season when he was fired . Early life . Singletary was born in Houston , Texas . He attended high school at Evan E . Worthing High School in Houston , and he was a star football player there . Mike Singletary ' s father , Charles , was a street preacher who spread the word of God on street corners in Dallas . The family soon settled in Houston . Mike , along with his father , Charles , mother , Rudell , and several brothers and sisters , shared a small wood frame home . Next to their home was a place called the Church of God , a church that Charles Singletary built himself and where he played guitar each Sunday . During the week , Mike ' s father worked as a contractor . Between his father ' s day job and his devotion to the church , Mike and his father never developed a strong relationship with each other . Tragedy would soon strike the family . Dale Singletary , the third oldest child , died unexpectedly . Dale had been sleeping in a room with James , another brother . Charles Jr . noticed a funny smell coming from the room . By the time Mike and Charles Jr . were able to break a window , and force entry into the room , fumes from the coal stove had claimed the life of Dale . As his relationship with his father drifted , Mike ' s brother Grady stepped in . Grady filled the void , telling young Mike to stay away from things like drinking beer and smoking cigarettes . During this time , Mike ' s father left the house , and moved in with another woman across town . Mike ' s interest in playing football peaked each Sunday , as he would watch the Dallas Cowboys every Sunday , and idolized players like Roger Staubach , Bob Lilly , and Lee Roy Jordan . When Mike began to play football as a seventh grader , it was his brother Grady , not father Charles , that would show up to every game , and cheer him on . Tragedy would soon strike again . Grady , the man who Mike Singletary had looked up at as a father figure , was killed in a six car accident caused by a drunk driver . The drunk driver was the only one who survived the accident . In ninth grade , Mike was an all - state guard and linebacker . Michael Thomas , Mike ' s brother - in - law ( married to his sister , Mary Lousie ) , began to attend all of Mike ' s games . As Mike became a star for Worthing High School , an all - black high school , Mike ' s mother also became a regular at the football games as well . Despite early concerns about poor grades affecting Mike ' s eligibility to play football , his grades improved . After a star career at Worthing , Mike found himself with a scholarship to Baylor University , and would meet the next mentor in his life , Baylor coach Grant Teaff . College career . Singletary attended college at Baylor University in Waco , Texas . At Baylor , Singletary earned All - America honors in both junior ( 1979 ) and senior ( 1980 ) years , where he averaged 15 tackles per game and established a team record with 232 tackles in 1978 , including 35 in a game against the University of Houston . During Singletary ' s senior season of 1980 , Baylor won 10 games , marking the first time in school history that had been accomplished . Singletary is the only college junior to be selected to the All - Southwest Conference Team of the 1970s . Singletary is the only two - time recipient of the Davey O ' Brien Memorial Trophy which was awarded to the most outstanding player in the Southwest Conference . Singletary lettered four years . He had 97 tackles as a freshman , 232 ( a school record ) as a sophomore , then 188 and 145 . The total , 662 , set a school record . In 1978 he had 35 tackles in a game against Arkansas , 31 against Ohio State . He was all - Southwest Conference three years and All - America two years . In 1979 and 1980 he won the Davey O ' Brien Award , given to the outstanding player in the Southwest . ( The award has since been changed to a national quarterback trophy . ) Professional career . At 6 ft 0 in ( 230 lbs ( 104 kg ) , Singletary became a starting linebacker in the Chicago Bears defense in the seventh game of his rookie season ( 1981 ) . In a game against the Kansas City Chiefs , his third as a starter , Singletary put on a remarkable defensive performance recording 10 tackles and forcing a fumble . A nearly unanimous all - rookie selection , Singletary went on to start 172 games for the Bears during his 12 - year career , which is the second most in club history . An intense player , Mike finished as the Bears ' first or second leading tackler each of his last 11 seasons . He amassed an impressive 1 , 488 career tackles , 885 of which were solo efforts . A constant force on defense , he missed playing just two games , both in 1986 . He also recorded 7 interception s and 12 fumble recoveries . In a game against the Denver Broncos in 1990 he had a personal - best performance when he recorded 10 solo tackles and 10 assists . Selected to play in a team record 10 Pro Bowl s , Singletary was All - Pro eight times , and All - NFC every year from 1983 to 1991 . He earned the nickname Samurai Mike during his professional career in recognition of the intimidating focus and intensity he displayed on the field . He was also known as the Minister of Defense , as he is also an ordained minister . ( For the same reason , the nickname would later be given to Reggie White . ) He led the Bears to a 15 - 1 season in 1985 . That season , he recorded 109 solo tackles ( 52 assists ) , 3 sacks , 1 interception , 3 fumble recoveries , 1 forced fumble , and 10 defended passes . He won the NFL Defensive Player of the Year , and led a defense that was ranked 1st overall ( 1st against the rush ; 3rd against the pass ) . Throughout the 1985 playoffs , Singletary provided stellar efforts in all 3 games . In the divisional game against the New York Giants at home , Singletary provided a fumble recovery early in the 1st quarter and a sack of quarterback Phil Simms on 3rd down early in the 3rd quarter . The Bears went on to win 21 - 0 . In the NFC Championship Game vs . the Los Angeles Rams , Singletary and the Bears dominated again . Mike Ditka said that the day before the game , he was talking to the offense while Singletary was in the next room giving the defense a motivational speech . While it started out quiet , within minutes , Samurai Mike was screaming at the top of his lungs and the defensive players were throwing chairs and knocking over tables . The Bears would eventually go to win Super Bowl XX by beating the New England Patriots 46 – 10 . In the game , Singletary broke up a pass that would have gone for a touchdown , delivered jarring hits to New England running back Craig James all game , and tied a Super Bowl record with 2 fumble recoveries . Singletary was named NFL Defensive Player of the Year by the Associated Press in 1985 and 1988 . He was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame in 1995 and to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1998 . In 1999 , he was ranked number 56 on " The Sporting News " ' list of the 100 Greatest Football Players . Coaching career . In 2002 , a group of alumni at Baylor University promoted Singletary for the school ' s open head coaching position , holding a conference call ( which included Mike Ditka and Dave McGinnis ) with the university administration . The position ultimately went to Guy Morriss . Singletary at the time had no head or assistant coaching experience and the university president later stated that they wanted to hire a coach with prior “ head coaching experience . ” In 2003 , Singletary became linebackers coach for the Baltimore Ravens , pairing him with Ray Lewis . Following the 2004 season , the San Francisco 49ers hired Ravens defensive coordinator Mike Nolan to be their head coach , and Singletary left the Ravens with Nolan to be San Francisco ' s assistant head coach and linebackers coach . In 2007 , Singletary interviewed for the head coaching job of the Dallas Cowboys and San Diego Chargers , but was ultimately passed over . With Morriss leaving Baylor after the 2007 season , Singletary appeared to be the leading candidate for his replacement , and expressed interest in the job . On November 19 , 2007 , Baylor athletic director Ian McCaw flew to San Francisco to interview Singletary . However , Singletary decided against taking the position . Singletary ' s son Matt was a freshman on the Baylor team in 2007 . 2008 . Singletary became the interim head coach of the 49ers after Nolan was fired on October 20 , 2008 . Singletary instantly made a statement in San Francisco by sending tight end Vernon Davis to the locker room with more than 10 minutes remaining in his head coaching debut , a 34 - 13 loss to the Seattle Seahawks on October 26 , 2008 . Davis was penalized 15 yards for slapping Seattle safety Brian Russell after a reception . In a post - game press conference , Singletary called Davis ' actions " uncoachable " and said that he would rather play with a 10 - man squad than have to deal with an apathetic 11 - man squad . It was later reported that during halftime of their game against the Seahawks , Singletary intentionally dropped his pants while giving a speech to illustrate just how poorly the 49ers had played in the first half . Taking over the 2 - 5 49ers team , Singletary was able to finish the season 5 – 4 under his leadership ( for a final team record of 7 – 9 ) . On December 28 , 2008 , after a 27 – 24 come - from - behind victory over the Washington Redskins , Singletary was offered the team ' s long - term head coaching position , and signed a 4 year , $ 10 million contract as the 49ers head coach . 2009 . After leading the 49ers to a positive finish in 2008 , Singletary helped the team jump out to a 3 – 1 overall start in the 2009 season . Despite a last - second loss to the Brett Favre - led Minnesota Vikings in Week 3 , the 49ers recorded wins against the reigning NFC champion Arizona Cardinals and NFC West divisional rival Seattle Seahawks and St . Louis Rams . While the 49ers were being blown out by the visiting Atlanta Falcons in Week 5 , Singletary lost his temper over his team ' s poor play ; afterward , he expressed remorse for his actions , saying how he wished he " had more coaching etiquette " while reiterating how he would " get better at those things as time goes on . " In the weeks to come , Singletary and offensive coordinator Jimmy Raye would drastically alter the 49ers ' game plan , opting to start quarterback Alex Smith in place of Shaun Hill while adopting more of a spread offense . The new game plan had mixed results , as the 49ers posted a 2 - 5 record from Week 7 to Week 13 and struggled to maintain their playoff hopes . In a Week 14 Monday Night Football matchup against the Arizona Cardinals , however , Singletary and his coaching staff were better able to integrate running back Frank Gore into the spread offense and pulled off an impressive 24 - 9 victory . With this momentum and their slim playoff hopes still alive , the 49ers visited the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 15 , but subsequently lost , 27 - 13 . After the game , a disappointed Singletary emphasized his team ' s continued need to improve , but still backed Smith as the team ' s starting quarterback . Singletary helped the 49ers end the season on a high note with victories against the Detroit Lions and St . Louis Rams to reach 8 - 8 , the team ' s first non - losing season since 2002 . Five players on the 2009 team were named to play in the NFL Pro Bowl . Those players were Patrick Willis , Andy Lee , Vernon Davis , Frank Gore , and Justin Smith . Also in 2009 , Singletary joined other members of the 1985 Chicago Bears in resurrecting the Super Bowl Shuffle for a Boost Mobile commercial broadcast during Super Bowl XLIV . 2010 . The 49ers began the 2010 season with an 0 - 5 record , marking their worst start since 1979 . The team ' s first win of the season came in Week 6 by defeating the Oakland Raiders . In Week 10 , San Francisco narrowly defeated the St . Louis Rams , 23 - 20 in overtime . At home , the 49ers suffered their first home shut out since Oct . 3 , 1977 , in a 21 - 0 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Nov . 21 . A rematch occurred with the Rams on Dec . 26 , which the 49ers lost 25 - 17 , eliminating them from playoff contention . After the game the 49ers fired Singletary . Defensive line coach Jim Tomsula took over for the final week of the season . 2011 . On January 18 , 2011 , Singletary confirmed that he had agreed to join the Minnesota Vikings coaching staff as the Linebackers Coach / Assistant to the Head Coach . Coaching tree . College head coach under whom Mike Singletary was a player : NFL head coaches under whom Mike Singletary was a player : NFL head coaches under whom Mike Singletary has served : Additional pursuits . Singletary is a motivational speaker and an ordained minister . He has co - authored several books : Personal life . Singletary and his wife , Kim , have seven children . His son Matt joined Baylor University ' s roster in 2007 as a freshman defensive end . However , Matt transferred to California Polytechnic State University where he is a junior defensive end . Mike Singletary is impersonated on " Late Show with David Letterman " by Art Kelly . Singletary ' s nephew , Vantz , is a linebackers coach at Liberty University and previously coached under Mike when he coached with the 49ers .