The Super Bowl 40 Years Ago
January 31st 2012 17:53
The Super Bowl was much different 40 years ago. In 1972 when the Miami Dolphins met the Dallas Cowboys in New Orleans' Tulane Stadium for Super Bowl VI the hype was nothing compared to today.
I was five at the time of Super Bowl VI and it is the first I remember really watching. It was really just another game. The Cowboys were the favorite while Miami was a young, underdog team that wasn't even supposed to be there. Led by head coach Tom Landry, Dallas was coming off of a loss the year before to the Baltimore Colts on a last second field goal. The Dolphins were coached by Don Shula who was three years removed from losing with the Colts in Super Bowl III to the New York Jets.
Landry is now a legend, but going into this game he had yet to win a championship and the Cowboys were not known as 'America's Team'. The label they wore then was 'Next Year's Champions' after five consecutive playoff failures.
Shula was known as the coach who had turned the Dolphins around in two years, but still carried the burden of being the first NFL team to lose a Super Bowl to an AFL team. To this day the Jets win over the Colts is considered arguably the greatest upset in pro football history.
These were two of the story lines going into the game. The other was Cowboy running back Duane Thomas refusing to talk. Today, players are forced to go to media day or they will be fined. In 1972 this was not the case and despite being surrounded by media the only thing that Thomas said was 'What time is it?'
I have a DVD of the CBS Super Bowl telecast. It was a day game played in sunlight from beginning to end. The pregame show was precisely 30 minutes long. It was sponsored by Black and Decker tools. Jack Whitaker hosted it by himself.
As for the game, Ray Scott did the play by play and Pat Summerall was the analyst. They did the TV intro while the starting lineups were being announced. The coin toss was done a half hour before the game so both teams captains came to the middle to confirm and the kicking units took the field. THEN they did the national anthem. There was a fly over and the game began.
Dallas dominated from beginning to end and just ran the ball down Miami's throat. There were very few passes and I don't think either team had a play of more than 30 yards. At halftime the score was 10-3. The halftime show lasted 20 minutes.
Then Dallas scored twice more and it was over. 24-3 Cowboys. It took less than three hours for them to play the game. There was no confetti or rock music blaring from the loudspeakers. Instead, once the teams cleared the field a band played for thirty minutes.
The post game show was done in the Dallas locker room. There was the trophy presentation, a few interviews and that was it. The biggest news was Thomas agreeing to break his silence and talk to CBS' Tom Brookshier. The interview went terribly.
Whitaker wrapped up the show in the eloquent way that only he could and that was it. The 1971 season was over.
And that was the Super Bowl 40 years ago.
I was five at the time of Super Bowl VI and it is the first I remember really watching. It was really just another game. The Cowboys were the favorite while Miami was a young, underdog team that wasn't even supposed to be there. Led by head coach Tom Landry, Dallas was coming off of a loss the year before to the Baltimore Colts on a last second field goal. The Dolphins were coached by Don Shula who was three years removed from losing with the Colts in Super Bowl III to the New York Jets.
Landry is now a legend, but going into this game he had yet to win a championship and the Cowboys were not known as 'America's Team'. The label they wore then was 'Next Year's Champions' after five consecutive playoff failures.
Shula was known as the coach who had turned the Dolphins around in two years, but still carried the burden of being the first NFL team to lose a Super Bowl to an AFL team. To this day the Jets win over the Colts is considered arguably the greatest upset in pro football history.
These were two of the story lines going into the game. The other was Cowboy running back Duane Thomas refusing to talk. Today, players are forced to go to media day or they will be fined. In 1972 this was not the case and despite being surrounded by media the only thing that Thomas said was 'What time is it?'
I have a DVD of the CBS Super Bowl telecast. It was a day game played in sunlight from beginning to end. The pregame show was precisely 30 minutes long. It was sponsored by Black and Decker tools. Jack Whitaker hosted it by himself.
As for the game, Ray Scott did the play by play and Pat Summerall was the analyst. They did the TV intro while the starting lineups were being announced. The coin toss was done a half hour before the game so both teams captains came to the middle to confirm and the kicking units took the field. THEN they did the national anthem. There was a fly over and the game began.
Dallas dominated from beginning to end and just ran the ball down Miami's throat. There were very few passes and I don't think either team had a play of more than 30 yards. At halftime the score was 10-3. The halftime show lasted 20 minutes.
Then Dallas scored twice more and it was over. 24-3 Cowboys. It took less than three hours for them to play the game. There was no confetti or rock music blaring from the loudspeakers. Instead, once the teams cleared the field a band played for thirty minutes.
The post game show was done in the Dallas locker room. There was the trophy presentation, a few interviews and that was it. The biggest news was Thomas agreeing to break his silence and talk to CBS' Tom Brookshier. The interview went terribly.
Whitaker wrapped up the show in the eloquent way that only he could and that was it. The 1971 season was over.
And that was the Super Bowl 40 years ago.
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