- Super Bowl XIV
Infobox SuperBowl
sb_name = XIV
visitor =Los Angeles Rams
home =Pittsburgh Steelers
visitor_abbr = LA
home_abbr = PIT
visitor_conf = NFC
home_conf = AFC
visitor_total = 19
home_total = 31visitor_qtr1 = 7
visitor_qtr2 = 6
visitor_qtr3 = 6
visitor_qtr4 = 0home_qtr1 = 3
home_qtr2 = 7
home_qtr3 = 7
home_qtr4 = 14date = January 20, 1980
stadium = Rose Bowl Stadium
city = Pasadena, California
attendance = 103,985 [The Super Bowl was attended by a record 103,985 spectators, which still stands as a record (throughSuper Bowl XLII ). The last time that the Rose Bowl held an NFL game wasSuper Bowl XXVII , and will never host a Super Bowl again as long as the league maintains its current policy that only a home stadium of an NFL team may host the championship game. And so far, no NFL stadium currently comes close to a capacity of 100,000 people and the fact that the Los Angeles area has not had an NFL team since 1995.Super Bowl XLV , which will be held in theDallas Cowboys new stadium inArlington, Texas , will be able to seat more than 100,000 fans, presenting the next opportunity to break the attendance record.]
odds = Steelers by 11 1/2
MVP =Terry Bradshaw ,Quarterback
anthem =Cheryl Ladd
coin_toss =Art Rooney
referee =Fred Silva
halftime =Up with People presents "A Salute to the Big Band Era"
network =CBS
announcers =Pat Summerall andTom Brookshier
rating = 46.3
share = 67
commercial = $222,000
last = XIII
next = XVSuper Bowl XIV was an
American football game played on January 20, 1980 at the Rose Bowl inPasadena, California to decide theNational Football League (NFL) champion following the 1979 regular season. Aided by two touchdowns in the fourth quarter, theAmerican Football Conference (AFC) championPittsburgh Steelers (15-4) defeated theNational Football Conference (NFC) championLos Angeles Rams (11-8), 31–19, to win their fourthSuper Bowl in team history. The Rams would not appear in the Super Bowl again until after they moved to St. Louis in 1995. They would appear inSuper Bowl XXXIV in 1999 andSuper Bowl XXXVI in 2001.Despite throwing three interceptions, Steelers
quarterback Terry Bradshaw was named the game's MVP by completing 14 of 21 passes for 309 yards and two touchdowns. [Bradshaw became the second person to win two Super Bowl MVP awards and the second to win them back-to-back (both afterBart Starr in Super Bowls I and II). Bradshaw is also currently the only quarterback to throw for more the 300 yards in consecutive Super Bowls.Joe Montana andKurt Warner would eventually tie Bradshaw but never in back-to-back championship games. Bradshaw's three interceptions were the most ever by a quarterback who won the Super Bowl MVP award. He is currently the only quarterback to win Super Bowl MVP honors despite throwing more interceptions then touchdown passes.]The Steelers' fans were known for their "
Terrible Towel " tradition, in which most fans would bring yellow towels (frequently printed with black lettering to signify the team's colors) to Steelers games and wave them around madly in a circle above their heads as a show of support. Many Terrible Towels were in evidence at the Rose Bowl during this Super Bowl, although the game was being played just 18 miles from the Rams' home stadium, theLos Angeles Memorial Coliseum .Background
Pittsburgh Steelers
The Steelers won the
AFC Central with a 12-4 regular season record, and advanced to their second consecutive Super Bowl and their fourth appearance in the last 6 seasons. Pittsburgh appeared to be even better than what they were in their 3 previous Super Bowl victories. They led the league with 6,258 yards in total offense, an average of 391 yards per game and just 31 yards short of an NFL record. The team also led the league in scoring with 412 points.Pittsburgh Quarterback
Terry Bradshaw had another fine season as the leader of the Steelers offense, throwing for 3,724 yards and 26 touchdowns during the regular season (but he did throw 25 interceptions). Wide receiverJohn Stallworth was his top target with 70 receptions for 1,183 yards and 8 touchdowns, while wide receiverLynn Swann caught 41 passes for 808 yards, an average of 19.7 yards per catch. Steelers starting tight endBennie Cunningham , who missed most of the previous season due to injuries, was also a big contributor with 36 receptions for 512 yards.Running back
Franco Harris was the Steelers leading rusher for the 8th consecutive season with 1,186 yards and 11 touchdowns. He also recorded his 7th consecutive season with more than 1,000 yards, tying an NFL record set byJim Brown . Harris also had his best year as a receiver out of the backfield, catching a career high 36 passes for a career high 291 yards and another touchdown. FullbackRocky Bleier also had another superb season, providing Harris with excellent blocking while also contributing 711 combined rushing and receiving yards. And Running backSidney Thornton also emerged as a big threat with 816 total yards and averaging 5 yards per carry. Pittsburgh also had a solid offensive line, led by centerMike Webster .The Steelers "Steel Curtain" defense finished the regular season as the top rated defense in the AFC, limiting opponents to only 4,621 offensive yards. Up front, linemen Joe Greene and
L.C. Greenwood terrorized opposing quarterbacks and rushers. And linebackers Jack Lambert andJack Ham excelled at run stopping and pass coverage, combining for 8 interceptions. The Steelers also had a fine secondary, lead by defensive backsMel Blount , who recorded 3 interceptions, andDonnie Shell , who had 5.Los Angeles Rams
Adversity hovered over the Rams long before the season began. During the off-season, owner
Carroll Rosenbloom drowned, and a power struggle ensued between Carroll's son,Steve Rosenbloom , and his second wife,Georgia Frontiere . Georgia eventually gained control of the team and fired her stepson. Prior to Carroll Rosenbloom's death, the Rams had already announced their intentions to leave the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum and move to Anaheim Stadium in Orange County for the 1980 season.The Rams barely outscored their opponents in total points, 323 to 309, and finished the regular season with a 9-7 record, the worst ever by a team who advanced to the Super Bowl. The team was plagued with injuries during the regular season, including the loss of their starting quarterback
Pat Haden . His replacement,Vince Ferragamo , completed less than 50 percent of his passes and threw twice as many interceptions (10) as touchdowns (5). But he still led the Rams to victory in 6 of their last 7 games.The Rams gained 6,006 total yards of offense during the regular season, ranking second in the league. The team's main offensive weapon was running back
Wendell Tyler , who rushed for 1,109 yards, caught 32 passes for 308 yards, and scored 10 touchdowns. Tyler's rushing yards came off just 218 rushing attempts, giving him a league leading 5.1 yards per carry average. FullbackCullen Bryant provided Tyler with excellent blocking while also gaining 846 total yards and scoring 5 touchdowns. Wide receiverPreston Dennard was the team's main deep threat, catching 43 passes for 766 yards and 4 touchdowns. The offensive line, led by tackleDoug France ,Jackie Slater and guardDennis Harrah , paved the Rams running attack to 4th in the NFC during the season despite injuries. They also gave up only 29 sacks.But the Rams main strength was their defense which featured defensive end
Jack Youngblood , who made the Pro Bowl for the 7th year in a row and was playing with a broken leg, and lightning-quickFred Dryer on the opposite end. Behind them, the Rams had 2 outstanding linebackers:Jack "Hacksaw" Reynolds , andJim Youngblood (no relation to Jack), who had recorded 5 interceptions and returned 2 for touchdowns. The Rams also had a solid secondary, led by free safetyNolan Cromwell who also grabbed 5 interceptions. This defensive unit allowed an NFL record negative 7 yards total offense in a 24-0 shutout of the Seahawks during the season.Playoffs
In the playoffs, the Rams avenged the previous year's NFC Championship Game shutout loss to the
Dallas Cowboys by beating them 21-19. Then they beat theTampa Bay Buccaneers in the NFC Championship Game, 9-0, scoring only three field goals.Meanwhile, the Steelers went on to defeat the
Miami Dolphins , 34-14, and theHouston Oilers , 27-13, in the playoffs. During those two playoff games, the Pittsburgh defense limited running backsLarry Csonka andEarl Campbell , respectively, to a combined total of only 35 rushing yards. Campbell was the league's rushing leader during the regular season with 1,697 yards, but could only gain 15 yards against the Steelers in the AFC Championship Game.uper Bowl pregame news and notes
Pittsburgh was heavily favored to win Super Bowl XIV and become the first team to win 4 Super Bowls. Most people did not think that the Rams even belonged on the same field with the Steelers. In fact,
Sports Illustrated had called the NFC Championship Game a game for losers, played by losers. One sports writer even suggested that Bradshaw throw left-handed and the Rams should be allowed to play with 12 men on the field to make the Super Bowl more competitive.However, Pittsburgh themselves were not taking their opponents lightly. In their previous meetings, the Rams held a 12-1-2 all-time record over the Steelers, including wins in 1971, 1975, and 1978.
Television and entertainment
CBS televised the game in the
United States with play-by-play announcerPat Summerall andcolor commentator Tom Brookshier . One of the guest analysts for the network's studio pregame show was former Oakland Raiders coach John Madden; he so impressed CBS executives that he replaced Brookshier as lead game analyst the following season.The
Los Angeles Unified School District All-City Band played during the pregame ceremonies. Later, actress and singerCheryl Ladd performed the national anthem. The coin toss ceremony featured longtime Steelers ownerArt Rooney .The performance event group
Up with People performed during the halftime show titled "A Salute to the Big Band Era".The famous
Coca-Cola commercial in whichMean Joe Greene gives a boy his game jersey aired during CBS' telecast of the game. However, it is technically not viewed as a Super Bowl ad since it actually debuted on October 1, 1979, not during the day of the game. [ [http://espn.go.com/page2/s/list/sbcommercials.html ESPN.com - Page2 - Best Super Bowl commercials ] ] [ [http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/ccmphtml/colahist.html Coca-Cola Television Advertisements:The D'Arcy Era ] ]The city of Pittsburgh celebrated its third major pro championship in 13 months. The Steelers had also won the previous year's Super Bowl, and the city's
Major League Baseball team, the Pirates, had won the World Series three months before this Super Bowl game. Ten days after the Steelers' Super Bowl victory, the city'sNational Hockey League team, thePittsburgh Penguins , changed its uniform colors to match the black and gold scheme of the Pirates and Steelers.Game summary
Despite being the underdogs, the Rams managed to hang on to a 13-10 lead at halftime, and a 19-17 lead at the beginning of the fourth quarter. But the Steelers held the Rams scoreless in the fourth quarter and scored two touchdowns for the win. Despite the game's uneven matchup and a final score reflecting disparity between the teams, this game is regarded by some as one of the most competitive games in Super Bowl history. Overall, the lead changed 7 times between both teams, a Super Bowl record; the Rams took the lead 3 times while the Steelers took it 4 times.
The Rams took the opening kickoff, surprising fans with an unusual lateral during the return that earned an extra two yards. The Steel Curtain, however, managed to force a three-and-out. Then on the Steelers' 7th play of their first possession, quarterback
Terry Bradshaw completed a 32-yard pass to running backFranco Harris to reach the Los Angeles 26-yard line. But a third down pass fell incomplete, forcing Pittsburgh to settle for a 41-yard field goal from rookie kickerMatt Bahr .Bahr's ensuing kickoff was very short, giving the Rams great field position at their 41-yard line. On the first play of the drive, Los Angeles running back
Wendell Tyler caught a 6-yard pass fromVince Ferragamo . Then on the next play, Tyler took a handoff, ran left, broke some tackles, and ran 39 yards to the Steelers 14-yard line before he was finally dragged down by Pittsburgh defensive backDonnie Shell , the longest run against the Steelers all season. 6 plays later, fullbackCullen Bryant scored on a 1-yard touchdown run to give the Rams a 7-3 lead.But the lead did not last long. Pittsburgh defensive back Larry Anderson returned the ensuing kickoff 45 yards to his own 47-yard line, and then the Steelers marched 53 yards in 9 plays using every offensive weapon in their arsenal. First, Harris ran for 12 yards, fullback
Rocky Bleier ran for 1, then tight endBennie Cunningham caught a pass for 8. Bleier ran again for 2, followed by Bradshaw's 18-yard completion to receiverLynn Swann on the last play of the first quarter. The second period opened with Bradshaw's 13-yard completion to Cunningham to reach the Los Angeles 5-yard line, and then Harris ran through the middle to the 4. Wide receiverJohn Stallworth was then stopped at the 1-yard line, but then Harris ran to the right untouched and scored a touchdown on the next play, giving the Steelers a 10-7 lead.But like the Rams' previous lead, the Steelers lead also turned out to be short-lived. Aided by a 20-yard pass interference penalty against Shell, Los Angeles advanced 67 yards in 10 plays to score on 31-yard field goal from kicker
Frank Corral to tie the game. Anderson gave the Steelers great field position after returning the ensuing kickoff 38 yards to the Pittsburgh 46-yard line, but the Steelers could not move the ball and had to punt. The Rams were also forced to punt on their next possession after only gaining 6-yards. But on the first play of the Steelers' next drive, Los Angeles defensive backDave Elmendorf intercepted a pass from Bradshaw and returned it 10 yards to Pittsburgh's 39-yard line.On the first 2 plays after the turnover, Ferragamo was sacked for a 10-yard loss and threw an incomplete pass. But he managed to overcome the situation with a 12-yard completion to Bryant on third down and a 10-yard completion to receiver
Billy Waddy on 4th down and 8. Ferragamo's next pass was complete to tight end Terry Nelson for a first down at the 13-yard line, but after throwing 2 incompletions, Pittsburgh linemanJohn Banaszak sacked Ferragamo on third down. However, Corral kicked a 45-yard field goal to give the Rams a 13-10 halftime lead.Many observers were surprised that the heavily favored Steelers trailed at the end of the half. "How can you mess up this way?", Steelers assistant coach
Woody Widenhofer asked his team at halftime, "Didn't we go over these things a dozen times? You guys are standing out there like statues." [ [http://www.steelergridiron.com/history/historyof14.html History of Steelers-Super Bowl xiv ] ]Anderson once again gave the Steelers great starting field position, returning the opening kickoff of the second half 37 yards to the Pittsburgh 39-yard line. The Steelers lulled the Rams defense by running the ball on three consecutive plays of the drive, and then Bradshaw burned them with a 47-yard touchdown completion to Swann, who made a leaping catch at the Los Angeles' 2-yard line and tumbled into the end zone, to give Pittsburgh a 17-13 lead.
But they didn't hold it. After starting the ensuing drive with 2 running plays, Ferragamo completed a 50-yard pass to Waddy. Then on the next play, Ferragamo handed the ball off to running back
Lawrence McCutcheon who started to run to the right. The Steelers defense came up to tackle him behind the line of scrimmage, only to watch him throw a 24-yard touchdown pass to Ron Smith. Corral missed the extra point attempt, but the Rams had retaken the lead, 19-17.The Steelers had some success advancing into Rams territory on their next 2 possessions only to see the Rams intercept the ball both times. First, Rams free safety Eddie Brown stopped the ensuing Steelers drive with an interception. Then after a punt, Pittsburgh drove all the way to the Rams 16-yard line, but Los Angeles defensive back
Rod Perry intercepted a pass intended for Stallworth. Thus, the third quarter ended with the Rams still in the lead, 19-17, seemingly in control of the game. Worse yet, Pittsburgh lost Lynn Swann to injury.With 12:59 left in the game, Rams punter Ken Clark's 59-yard punt planted Pittsburgh back on their own 25-yard line. Then faced with 3rd down and 8, Bradshaw took the snap, faked a handoff, and then threw a pass to Stallworth, who was running a streak pattern down the middle of the field. Stallworth caught the ball without breaking stride and took it all the way to the end zone for a 73-yard go-ahead touchdown to make the score 24-19 for the Steelers. The NFL Films highlight film notes that safety Eddie Brown was supposed to help Rod Perry in covering Stallworth, but for some reason Brown ignored the Steeler receiver.
After an exchange of punts, the Rams mounted one final, spirited drive to regain the lead. Ferragamo smartly moved the Rams down the field, completing 3 or 4 passes around runs by Tyler. His 15-yard completion to
Billy Waddy on 3rd and 13 moved the Rams to the Pittsburgh 32-yard line with just under 6 minutes remaining. However, on the following play, Ferragamo made his first, and only mistake of the game. Despite the fact that Waddy had broken free down the right side of the field, Ferragamo had zeroed in onPreston Dennard down the middle of the field, but he didn't notice Pittsburgh linebacker Jack Lambert playing behind Dennard. As Ferragamo released the ball, Lambert jumped in front of Dennard and intercepted the pass with 5:24 remaining, short-circuiting Los Angeles' drive and for all intents and purposes clinching the game for the Steelers.When faced with a 3rd down and 7 on their ensuing drive, Bradshaw once again made a crucial long pass completion to Stallworth, this time a 45-yard reception to the Rams 22-yard line. Two plays later, a pass interference penalty on Los Angeles cornerback
Pat Thomas in the end zone gave the Steelers a first down at the 1-yard line. The Rams managed to keep Bleier and Harris out of the end zone for 2 plays, but Harris then scored on a third down, 1-yard touchdown run to give the Steelers a 31-19 lead and put the game away. The Rams responded by driving to Pittsburgh's 37-yard line, but ended up turning over the ball on downs with 39 seconds left in the game, and the Steelers ran out the clock for the win.This was the third time in Super Bowl history that a team overcame a deficit entering the fourth quarter to win the game. The Baltimore Colts entered the final quarter down 13-6 against Dallas in
Super Bowl V and won the game 16-13. ThePittsburgh Steelers started the final period against Dallas inSuper Bowl X down 10-7 and eventually won the game 21-17. The lead had changed hands seven times, a Super Bowl record to this day. Franco Harris, Lynn Swann, and John Stallworth became the fourth, fifth and sixth players to score touchdowns in back-to-back Super Bowls, respectively.Ferragamo finished the game with 15 out of 25 completions for 212 yards, with 1 interception. Tyler was the top rusher of the game with 60 yards, and caught 2 passes for 20 yards. Waddy was the Rams leading receiver with 3 catches for 75 yards. Harris led the Steelers in rushing with 44 yards and 2 touchdowns, while also catching 3 passes for 66 yards. Stallworth was the top receiver of the game with 3 receptions for 121 yards and a touchdown, an average of 40.3 yards per catch. Swann had 5 catches for 79 yards and a touchdown. Larry Anderson set a Super Bowl record with 162 yards from his 5 kickoff returns.
coring summary
*PIT - FG: Matt Bahr 41 yards 3-0 PIT
*LA - TD: Cullen Bryant 1 yard run (Frank Corral kick) 7-3 LA
*PIT - TD: Franco Harris 1 yard run (Matt Bahr kick) 10-7 PIT
*LA - FG: Frank Corral 31 yards 10-10 tie
*LA - FG: Frank Corral 45 yards 13-10 LA
*PIT - TD: Lynn Swann 47 yard pass from Terry Bradshaw (Matt Bahr kick) 17-13 PIT
*LA - TD: Ron Smith 24 yard pass from Lawrence McCutcheon (kick failed) 19-17 LA
*PIT - TD: John Stallworth 73 yard pass from Terry Bradshaw (Matt Bahr kick) 24-19 PIT
*PIT - TD: Franco Harris 1 yard run (Matt Bahr kick) 31-19 PITtarting lineups
Pittsburgh Los Angeles OFFENSE
John Stallworth 82 WRBilly Waddy 80Jon Kolb 55 LTDoug France 77Sam Davis 57 LGKent Hill 72Mike Webster 52 CRich Saul 61Gerry Mullins 72 RGDennis Harrah 60Larry Brown 79 RTJackie Slater 78Bennie Cunningham 89 TETerry Nelson 83Lynn Swann 88 WRPreston Dennard 88Terry Bradshaw 12 QBVince Ferragamo 15Rocky Bleier 20 FBCullen Bryant 32Franco Harris 32 RBWendell Tyler 26DEFENSE
L.C. Greenwood 68 LEJack Youngblood 85 Joe Greene 75 LTMike Fanning 79Gary Dunn 67 RTLarry Brooks 90John Banaszak 76 REFred Dryer 89Robin Cole 56 LLBBob Brudzinski 59Jack Lambert 58 MLBJack Reynolds 64Dennis Winston 53 RLBJim Youngblood 53Ron Johnson 29 LCBPat Thomas 27Mel Blount 47 RCBRod Perry 49Donnie Shell 31 SSDave Elmendorf 42J.T. Thomas 24 FSNolan Cromwell 21*Referee:
Fred Silva
*Umpire:Al Conway
*Head Linesman:Burl Toler
*Line Judge: Bob Beeks
*Field Judge: Charley Musser
*Side Judge: Ben Tompkins
*Back Judge:Stan Javie Weather conditions
*67 degrees, sunny
ee also
*
1979 NFL season
*NFL playoffs, 1979-80 References
* [http://www.superbowl.com/ Super Bowl official website]
*cite book | title=2006 NFL Record and Fact Book | publisher=Time Inc. Home Entertainment | id=ISBN 1-933405-32-5
*cite book | title=Total Football II: The Official Encyclopedia of the National Football League | publisher=Harper Collins | id=ISBN 1-933405-32-5
*cite book | title=The Official NFL Encyclopedia Pro Football | publisher=NAL Books | id=ISBN 0-453-00431-8
*cite book | title=The Sporting News Complete Super Bowl Book 1995 | id=ISBN 0-89204-523-X
* http://www.pro-football-reference.com - Large online database of NFL data and statistics
* [http://www.usatoday.com/sports/football/super/superbowl-plays.htm Super Bowl play-by-plays] fromUSA Today (Last accessed September 28, 2005)
* [http://www.sportsnetwork.com/default.asp?c=sportsnetwork&page=nfl/superbowl/2005/superbowl-alltime-odds.htm All-Time Super Bowl Odds] from The Sports Network (Last accessed October 16, 2005)
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