Super Bowl Facts, Records, and History

The Super Bowl is one of the most watched events on television, so how about some information about this event.

The History:
Although the NFL has been around since 1920, the Super Bowl did not come about until 1967. In 1960, an upstart professional football league called the AFL started playing, and the two organizations decided that the NFL champion should play the AFL champion. Of course a name of this magnitude needs a big name, and then-NFL commissioner Pete Rozelle wanted to name it “The Big One,” but that name didn’t stick. Instead, Kansas City Chiefs founder Lamar Hunt suggested the name “Super Bowl.” He actually got the idea from watching his grandchildren play with a Super Ball, and the name stuck because it was consistent with the naming convention of College football games. There were 4 Super Bowls while the AFL and NFL existed as separate leagues; the NFL won the first two and the AFL won the second two.

A Super Ball

The Facts:
The Super Bowl pits the AFC champion against the NFC champion. In order for each team to win its conference championship, they need to reach the playoffs, and then win-out in the playoffs, to then reach the Super Bowl. Since the AFL-NFL merger, the NFC leads 20-18. The Super Bowl is played in a different location every year, and is generally played in a warm-weather location. This is evidenced by the fact that Miami and New Orleans have each hosted the Super Bowl 9 times. However, the Super Bowl has also been hosted by Minneapolis, Detroit, and Pontiac Michigan; the caveat, all three venues had enclosed stadiums. Kansas City petitioned to get the Super Bowl in 2015 at Arrowhead Stadium, but it was contingent on getting a retractable roof placed on the stadium. Taxpayers refused, and KC withdrew their petition. Here’s a list of stats and figures courtesy of Wikipedia:

Just the facts, ma'am.

• Teams scoring first are 27–15 (.643); 14–7 (.667) with a touchdown, 12–8 (.600) with a field goal and 1–0 with a safety.
• Teams scoring 32+ points are 18–0; 30+ points, 21–1 (.955); 20+ points, 37–10 (.787); under 20 points, 5–32 (.135); under 14 points, 0–17.
• Touchdowns have been scored in every game to date.
• Field goals have been converted in 40 of 42 Super Bowls to date.
• Teams scoring the game’s first touchdown are 30–12 (.714); the game’s first field goal, 22–18 (.550).
• Teams leading after one quarter are 21–10 (.677). Eleven Super Bowls have been tied at the end of the first quarter.
• Teams leading at halftime are 32–8 (.800). Two Super Bowls have been tied at halftime.
• Teams leading after three quarters are 35–6 (.854). One Super Bowl has been tied at the end of the third quarter.
• Teams shutout in the first half are 0–11; in the second half 1–7 (.125).
• Teams with lower-numbered seeds are 13–12 (.520) and NFC teams have won 6 of 8 Super Bowls matching same-numbered seeds, which thus far have always been #1 vs. #1. Playoff seedings were first instituted in the 1975 season.
• When the game matches two teams that played each other during the regular season, the regular season loser is 7–5 (.583), having won 5 of the last 6.
• Twenty-two Super Bowls have seen both teams hold the lead at least once.
• There has never been a Super Bowl overtime, although three games have been tied in the final minute.
• There has never been a Super Bowl shutout; every Super Bowl participant to date has scored at least 3 points.
• No Super Bowl has ever been scoreless at halftime.
• Teams gaining a double-digit lead (10 points or more) during the game are 37–1 (.974). Four Super Bowls haven’t had such a point difference.
• No team or coach has ever won more than two consecutive Super Bowls.
• No coach has ever won Super Bowls with two different clubs. However, five coaches have taken two different clubs to the Super Bowl and four have won at least once with one of the teams: Don Shula with the Colts (0–1) and Dolphins (2–3), Bill Parcells with the Giants (2–0) and Patriots (0–1), Mike Holmgren with the Packers (1–1) and Seahawks (0–1), and Dick Vermeil with the Eagles (0–1) and Rams (1–0). Dan Reeves is the exception, having taken both the Broncos (3 times) and Falcons (once) to the Super Bowl, but losing every appearance with both teams.

The Records:

• Most passing yards – 414, Kurt Warner in Super Bowl XXXIV
• Most rushing yards – 204, Timmy Smith in Super Bowl XXII
• Most receiving yards – 215, Jerry Rice in Super Bowl XXIII
• Most TD passes – 6, Steve Young in Super Bowl XXIX
• Most rushing touchdowns – 3, Terrell Davis in Super Bowl XXXII
• Most receiving touchdowns – 3, Jerry Rice in Super Bowl XXIV and XXIX
• Most Super Bowl MVPs – 3, Joe Montana in Super Bowl XVI, XIX, and XXIV
• Most points scored by a winning team – 55, 49ers in Super Bowl XXIV

For a more comprehensive list of records, visit the Super Bowl records page at Wikipedia.

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