Bob Griese Robert Allen " Bob " Griese ( pronounced ; born February 3 , 1945 ) is a former American football quarterback who earned All - American honors with the Purdue Boilermakers before being drafted in 1967 by the American Football League ' s Miami Dolphins . Griese led the Dolphins to three consecutive Super Bowl appearances , including two Super Bowl victories ( VII and VIII ) . Griese ' s was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame and the Indiana Football Hall of Fame in 1984 and the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1990 . He later worked as a television commentator for college football on ESPN on ABC . Early life . Griese was born in Evansville , Indiana to Ida ( Ulrich ) and Sylverious " Slick " Griese . Slick owned a plumbing company in Evansville and died in 1955 when Bob was ten years old . Bob played baseball primarily , and excelled as a pitcher . He also starred in basketball and football at Evansville ' s Rex Mundi High School . He earned 12 varsity letters for the Monarchs . Basketball life . He led the basketball team to the # 1 ranking in Indiana during the 1962 - 63 season and a record of 19 - 3 . He scored 900 points in his high school career and while being named All - Sectional , he could not lead the Monarchs past mighty Evansville Bosse in the highly - competitive Evansville IHSAA Sectional . Football . The Monarchs were 15 - 5 during his Junior ( 9 - 1 ) and Senior ( 6 - 4 ) seasons , as he was named 1st Team _ All - City for three seasons . After being recruited by several colleges for football , Bob chose Purdue , where he majored in business management and became a three - sport star . In 1984 , Bob was inducted into the Indiana Football Hall of Fame . College career . While at Purdue , Bob became a member of Sigma Chi Fraternity . In college Griese pitched for the baseball team , going 12 - 1 one season , played guard on the basketball team , and played quarterback , kicker , and punter for the Purdue football team . There were many games where Bob scored every one of Purdue ’ s points . He currently ranks # 9 in scoring at Purdue ; # 5 in scoring among non - kickers and # 4 among kickers . Griese ’ s passing skills greatly improved under the tutelage of head coach Jack Mollenkopf and quarterback coach Bob DeMoss . In his junior year at game against Notre Dame , Griese completed 19 of 22 passes as he led the Boilermakers to an upset win . Griese was a two - time All - American at Purdue , finishing at # 8 in the 1965 Heisman Trophy race and was the runner - up to Steve Spurrier for the 1966 Heisman Trophy . Purdue finished second in the Big Ten in 1966 , and he led the school ' s first appearance in the Rose Bowl , where they defeated USC 14 - 13 . He was inducted into the Rose Bowl Hall of Fame in 1992 . He was also awarded the Big Ten Medal for excellence in athletics and academics . His sterling college career earned him induction into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1984 . In 1994 , he was inducted as an inaugural member of the Purdue Intercollegiate Athletic Hall of Fame . Pro Football career . 1967 – 1969 . Griese was the fourth player selected in the 1967 Common Draft . He was selected by the AFL ' s Miami Dolphins . Griese recorded 2 , 005 yards and 15 touchdowns in his rookie year in Miami . An AFL All - Star during his first two years , Griese went on to earn AFL All - Star or AFC - NFC Pro Bowl honors in six more seasons . While he never put up huge numbers , his leadership played an important role in helping the Dolphins compete in three consecutive Super Bowl s , winning the latter two contests . Griese started the season as the team ’ s second - string quarterback behind John Stofa . However , Stofa broke his ankle in the first quarter of the first game of the 1967 season ( after Joe Auer missed a block on a linebacker ) , and Griese stepped in and went on to a 35 - 21 victory against the Denver Broncos . Coincidentally , Griese ' s first play in the pros was a touchdown pass to Joe Auer . The next three years were fairly rough for the expansion team Dolphins . The wins were hard to come by , and after a difficult 1969 season that seemed to be a step back from the 1968 season , coach George Wilson was fired . 1970 – 1976 . Dolphin owner Joe Robbie brought in Don Shula from the Baltimore Colts in 1970 , and immediately the Dolphins ' personality and fortunes turned . The team found a new discipline , and discovered what it took to become a winning football team . They went from a 3 - 10 - 1 team in 1969 to a 10 - 4 team in 1970 , making the playoffs . The next year the team made it to the Super Bowl , and Bob Griese was named the Most Valuable Player in the NFL , receiving the Jim Thorpe trophy . Although the Dolphins lost that Super Bowl in a bitter loss to the Dallas Cowboys , there was no denying that this was a team that was quickly becoming a powerhouse . The next season began well , with the Dolphins winning their first few games over their toughest opponents of the year . However , in the fifth game of the season , Bob Griese was tackled by Deacon Jones and Ron East of the San Diego Chargers , and he went down with a broken leg and dislocated ankle . In came Earl Morrall , fresh off the waiver wire from Shula ’ s former team , the Baltimore Colts . Morrall guided the Dolphins through the rest of the regular season , and maintained an unbeaten record in the process . Morrall even led the AFC in passing , as Griese had done the previous year . However , as the playoffs began , it was obvious that the Dolphins were not as strong as they needed to be to last very long in the postseason . The Dolphins barely squeaked by a Cleveland Browns team that they should have beaten easily , and then they got a slow start the following week against the Pittsburgh Steelers . Shula knew that he needed to turn back to Griese to relieve the ailing Morrall . Shula simply turned to Bob at halftime and asked him , “ Are you ready ? ” to Griese ’ s reply , “ Yes , I ’ m ready . ” With that , Bob took the field and responded as if he had never been away , leading the Dolphins to a convincing win and their second straight Super Bowl appearance . Despite their unbeaten season , the Dolphins were listed as two point underdogs to the Washington Redskins in Super Bowl VII . However , true to the form of the season , the Dolphins played a perfect , ball control game . Griese connected on 8 of 11 passes for 88 yards and a touchdown , as Larry Csonka rushed for over 120 yards , and the Dolphins defense , led by 17 tackles by Manny Fernandez , stymied the Redskin offense . The following year , the Dolphins seemed even more efficient and dominant . Although they did not make it through the season undefeated , they again easily marched to the Super Bowl , and then totally dominated the Minnesota Vikings in Super Bowl VIII . In 1975 , Griese and the Dolphins had another strong season . But late in the season in a game against the Baltimore Colts , Griese suffered a broken toe and was out for the rest of the season . The Dolphins finished 10 - 4 , and missed out on the playoffs for the first time in the Shula era . In 1976 , the Dolphins were beset with many injuries , and the team finished with a 6 - 8 record , the first time Don Shula had ever suffered a losing season in his career ( which went back to 1963 ) . 1977 – 1980 . 1977 was a rebound year for both Griese and the Dolphins . Bob began to wear eyeglasses on the field . On Thanksgiving , 1977 , Griese threw six touchdown passes in three quarters to defeat the St . Louis Cardinals 55 - 14 . Bob again led the AFC in touchdown passes thrown but the Dolphins rebound to a 10 - 4 record was again not enough to get the team into the playoffs . The following year , Bob tore ligaments in his knee in a preseason game . However , when he came back , he was just as strong a passer as he had been the previous year . In one game against the Houston Oilers , Griese dueled with Oiler running back Earl Campbell in an offensive slugfest . Griese threw for over 300 yards and Campbell rushed for nearly 200 . The Oilers won the game 35 - 30 . For the year , Griese completed a league leading 63 % of his passes , as the Dolphins went 11 - 5 , losing again to the Oilers in the playoffs . In 1979 , Bob suffered from some nagging leg injuries that affected his throwing . He was not as effective , and he began to hear some criticism . However , he was able to lead the Dolphins to a 10 - 6 record . The Dolphins then found themselves dominated by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the first round of the playoffs . In 1980 , Griese had found that he had lost his starting spot in the roster to either Don Strock or rookie David Woodley . However , Griese came off the bench for several games in a row to lead comeback wins . Griese won back the starting spot in the fifth game of the season , but was tackled hard by Mike Ozdowski of the Baltimore Colts . The tackle tore up Bob ’ s shoulder , and he was out for the rest of the year . The injury eventually led to Griese ’ s decision to retire from the game at the age of 35 . Bob was eventually elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1990 . He had established his reputation as the “ Thinking Man ’ s Quarterback , ” as he brilliantly called his own plays throughout his career . Dolphin owner Joe Robbie called him “ the cornerstone of the franchise , ” around whom the Miami Dolphins were built . Robbie elected to ask Griese to stay on for another year as assistant coach , which he did for the 1981 season , helping Strock and the young Woodley as they teamed to become the famous “ Woodstrock . ” Bob decided that he did not like the hours required to be an assistant coach , hoping to devote more time to his family , yet still enjoyed being part of the game . ( Sources for Pro Football Career found in " Undefeated " , by Bob Griese , 2000 , and " The Winning Edge " by Don Shula , 1974 . ) The Miami Dolphins had the highest winning percentage in all professional sports in the 1970s , and Bob Griese was its starting quarterback throughout the decade , except when he was injured for several games in 1972 , 1975 , and 1978 . In Griese ' s 14 pro seasons , he threw for 25 , 092 yards and 192 touchdowns . Griese also rushed for 994 yards and seven scores . Griese was a six - time Dolphins ' MVP and was All - Pro in 1971 and 1977 . He played in two AFL All - Star games and six Pro Bowls . The Dolphins retired his number 12 during a " Monday Night Football " game in 1985 , telecast on ABC , the network which would prominently be featured in his post - football career . Life after football . NBC Sports / ABC Sports . To stay in touch with the game , Griese decided to take a job as an announcer for NBC Sports , teaming with Charlie Jones for NFL games . Later , Griese was hired by ABC Sports , where he began to provide color commentary for college football games . He formed a memorable team with Keith Jackson , and found many opportunities to watch his son Brian Griese play for the Michigan Wolverines . Eventually , Bob was considered one of the top commentators in the country . ABC was at first reluctant to let Griese broadcast Michigan games , fearing a conflict of interest . But when they decided to give it a try , Bob remained as impartial and professional as he could be , even referring to his son as “ Griese , ” rather than Brian , and pointing out errors when he felt necessary . On January 1 , 1998 , Bob got to broadcast the Rose Bowl game , the last college game of his son ' s career . Brian was named MVP of the game , leading his Wolverines to an undefeated season and the national championship title with their Rose Bowl victory . Bob and Brian were emotional at that moment , as they thought of Bob ’ s wife Judi , who had died from breast cancer but whom they both felt was there at that special moment . Bob and Brian later wrote a book , entitled " Undefeated " ( ISBN 0 - 7852 - 7021 - 3 ) , which discussed not only their football connection , but also their love for Judi . ( That book is the source of this information . ) Brian has since become a professional quarterback and broadcaster himself , once playing for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers . Brian now broadcasts games for ESPN360 . ESPN . On October 24 , 2009 , Griese provided color commentary for the University of Minnesota at Ohio State University football game . During the broadcast , while an upcoming NASCAR race was being advertised during a game break , a list of the top five drivers in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series were displayed on the screen . Broadcaster Chris Spielman asked where Colombian NASCAR driver Juan Pablo Montoya was on the list . Griese responded , " He ' s out having a taco . " Griese apologized for the comment at the end of the broadcast . ESPN served Griese with a one - game suspension for the remark . Griese retired from ESPN on February 3 , 2011 , on his 66th birthday and celebrated at a local taqueria . Miami Dolphins Broadcasts . Miami Dolphins Preseason . Since 2002 Bob Griese has been an analyst of Miami Dolphins preseason TV broadcasts . Miami Dolphins Radio Network . In 2011 Bob Griese joined the Dolphins Radio Broadcast team as a color commentator , replacing former teammate Jim Mandich . Personal life . Bob now resides with his second wife , Shay , in Jupiter , Florida and Banner Elk , North Carolina . His son is Brian Griese , who also played quarterback in the NFL . In 2006 , he was on " Wheel of Fortune " . Griese won , and the winnings went to Judi ' s House .