Legendary NFL coach Tony Dungy writes book with Gainesville author

Tony Dungy, legendary NFL coach and Super Bowl Champion, was in the Gainesville area Tuesday night for a book signing. The signing was to promote Dungy’s new book “The Soul of a Team”. The book that was published this month is co-authored by Nathan Whitaker, a Gainesville native.

Very excited today for the release of my new book The Soul of a Team. It outlines principles for team building and getting the most out of any group—sports, business or families—whether you’re the leader or a teammate. You can pick it up at bookstores today or order online. pic.twitter.com/oPopw7fnxz

— Tony Dungy (@TonyDungy) January 22, 2019

“The Soul of a Team” marks the sixth book that Dungy and Whitaker have done together. It’s based on a ficticious football and goes through the trials and tribulations a team must go through to be successful.

About the Book

Like many coaches across the landscape, Dungy is always asked to speak to teams. Instead of his public speaking, Dungy decided to use this book to detail on how team’s can be successful.

In the book, Dungy and Whitaker created the team of the Orlando Vipers, the newest expansion team in the NFL. Throughout the story, Dungy and Whitaker created situations that’s teams would regularly face. With the created story lines that are common in the NFL, the authors allow the reader to use their imagination.

Dungy on idea of book.

The authors let the reader speculate on certain things of the book. For example, the Vipers have a wide receiver who makes the headlines for the wrong reason and could be considered a cancer to the team. Whitaker said that allowed readers to imagine what high-end receiver the Vipers could be dealing with.

About the Co-Author

Most people reading the book and hearing about it are familiar with Tony Dungy. That’s not the case for Nathan Whitaker.  Whitaker turns out to be from Gainesville, one of the main reasons their book tour stopped in town.

Had a great time signing books yesterday at Books A Million in Bradenton and Gainesville. Will be signing The Soul Of a Team tonight at Barnes and Noble in The Villages. Come out and join us. pic.twitter.com/JqWdhBQ2OE

— Tony Dungy (@TonyDungy) January 30, 2019

Whitaker is the author of multiple books, included the other five he co-authored with Dungy. His first book, “Quiet Strength” was the #1 New York Times bestseller at the time.

Over the course of writing the book, Whitaker said he learned a lot from Dungy during the process. Whitaker praises Dungy for his writing ability and said he was extremely fortunate to work with the Super Bowl winning coach once again.

Dungy’s Super Bowl Pick

With it being Super Bowl week, everyone is being asked on who they think will come out on top. For Super Bowl 53, Dungy picked a familiar winner. Dundy has high praise the Los Angeles Rams and their high-powered offense. However, Dungy thinks the New England Patriots experience will be enough for them to win.

Dungy himself knows a thing or two on what Bill Belichick and Tom Brady are capable of.