Lindy Infante, Former NFL Head Coach, Dies at Age 75

“Fly High With Lindy” was the rally cry in January of 1988 when the Green Bay Packers finally broke away from the Vince Lombardi ties to the past and hired Gelindo “Lindy” Infante as their Head Coach.

“He was the consummate father, husband & coach”, Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh said on Twitter. Indianapolis drafted quarterback Peyton Manning the following offseason. He was sacked two seasons later, after new general manager Ron Wolf went to practice late in the 1991 season and reported to team president Bob Harlan that there was a “country club” atmosphere on the team. He was 24-40 with the Packers and 12-20 with the Colts.

Infante was a well-regarded offensive mind who led the Packers to a 10-6 record in that 1989 season, ending a long run of futility in Green Bay that had seen the Packers fail for 16 straight years to win more than eight games.

The organization hailed the Infantes for their presence in the community.

Former Packers defensive back LeRoy Butler was informed of Infante’s death on Thursday.

Infante played halfback at Florida before a short stint in the Canadian Football League with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats. Smith became head coach at Arizona and Infante returned to the pro game in Cincinnati, where he was quarterbacks coach and eventually offensive coordinator for the Bengals, helping them reach their first Super Bowl in January 1982.