With the Hurricanes, he played on both sides of the ball and put together an outstanding career, winning All-American honors and was the first player in school history to have his number retired.

In February 1968, Dooley was returned to the offensive side of the ball, but that status changed just months later when 73-year-old George Halas announced his retirement as head coach on May 27 due to arthritis.

[10] However, the second half of the campaign proved to be a disaster, with just one win in the final seven contests, including a 34–3 humiliation on Monday Night Football on November 29 to the other Super Bowl participant, the Miami Dolphins.

The inevitable result of the 1971 collapse came a month later when Dooley was fired on December 29, the first Bears coach ever to suffer that fate.

The job came just one week after he had filed for bankruptcy, citing nearly half a million dollars in debts, including $320,000 to former Bear player and assistant Sid Luckman.

Dooley flourished in his new job, aiding the Bears's rise and playing a part in their dominating 1985 season that was capped with a 46–10 victory over the New England Patriots in Super Bowl XX.

Dooley battled amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS, Lou Gehrig's disease) for his last ten years, and died at Lake Forest Hospital in 2008, one month before his 78th birthday.