Super Bowl X, a match-up between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Dallas Cowboys, will go down in NFL history as one of the best Super Bowls ever.
The Steelers
The Pittsburgh Steelers joined the NFL in 1933. From 1933 to 1971, the team had just eight winning seasons and never played in a championship game. That all changed in 1972 when the Steelers reached the AFC Championship. But they lost that game by four points to the eventual Super Bowl Champion Miami Dolphins. The Steelers were back in the playoffs again the following season–this time, losing to the Oakland Raiders.
The Steelers were loaded with talent, and it was just a matter of time before they would make it to the Super Bowl. They did just that the following season. They not only made it, but they won it– giving the team its first World Championship in its forty-two-year history.
The Cowboys
The Cowboys joined the league in 1960 as an expansion team and struggled at the start with five losing seasons in a row. In 1965, the team showed promise, going 7-7. Then, Dallas reached the NFL Championship in 1966 and 1967, losing both times to eventual Super Bowl Champion Green Bay.
The next two seasons ended the same way–with playoff losses to the Cleveland Browns. Then, in 1970, the Cowboys finally reached the Super Bowl–only to lose it to the Baltimore Colts in heartbreaking fashion on a last-second field goal. But come back they did, winning the Super Bowl the following season with a convincing 24-3 victory over the Miami Dolphins.
In 1972 and 1973, Dallas reached the NFC Championship but lost both times. The team finished 8-6 in 1974 and missed the playoffs for the first time in nine years.
Going into the 1975 season, many players were on the downside of their careers. Several players retired, other players were traded, and 1975 was supposed to be a rebuilding year. But Dallas sprung a surprise: this would be a Super Bowl year.
The Game: First and Second Quarters
On January 18, 1976, the defending Super Bowl Champion Steelers faced the underdog Cowboys at the Orange Bowl in Miami.
Here’s how the first half went.
Dallas won the coin toss and elected to receive. Former Steelers player Preston Pearson caught the kickoff at the three-yard line. But instead of running with the ball, he handed it off to rookie linebacker Thomas Henderson on a reverse. Henderson ran the ball to Pittsburgh’s 44-yard line before being knocked out of bounds by kicker Roy Gerela.
Courtesy: Topps
But the Cowboys’ first possession did not go well. QB Roger Staubach faked a handoff to Preston Pearson, but that fake did not fool defensive end, LC Greenwood. Left unblocked, Greenwood was on Staubach immediately, forcing a fumble. Dallas recovered but lost three yards. The next two plays resulted in a two-yard run and an incomplete pass. Dallas punted, and Pittsburgh took possession at their 17.
The Steelers came out running. Franco Harris gained eight yards, followed by a seven-yard run by Rocky Bleier. Two more runs by Harris gave the Steelers a third and one. Another run by Harris gained nothing, and the Steelers punted.
Pittsburgh punter Bobby Walden fumbled the snap, and a swarm of Cowboys players tackled him. Dallas had possession on the Steelers 29 yard line, and the Cowboys didn’t wait to take advantage. A Staubach pass to Drew Pearson resulted in a touchdown. The extra point was good.
Just like that, the underdog Cowboys had a 7-0 lead.
Dallas kicked off, and the Steelers took possession at their 32. A run by Franco gained 8 yards. On second down, Bleier got another yard, and Harris plowed for six more and a first down. On the Steelers ninth running play in a row, Bleier gained another four yards.
Courtesy: Topps
Then. in second and six, Terry Bradshaw finally threw his first pass. Receiver Lynn Swann made a spectacular sideline catch for a 32-yard gain. Two more running plays gained nine years–Bleier ran for five and Harris got four. On third and one from the seven, the Steelers caught the Cowboys defense off-guard with an unexpected pass.
Tight end Randy Grossman caught Pittsburgh’s first score. The extra point tied the game at seven.
After the kickoff, the Cowboys took over at their 35. Robert Newhouse ran for seven, and Doug Dennison gained another 5. A pass to tight end Jean Fuggettt went for 9 yards, and then a draw play to Newhouse gained 16. Another draw play to Newhouse got 5, while Dennison gained another 4.
It appeared that the Cowboys had the “Steel Curtain” defense on the ropes, but a third-and-one run by Newhouse came up inches short of the first down. An ordinarily conservative Tom Landry decided to go for it, and Doug Dennison got just enough for the first down, but the next two runs gained only two yards.
The first quarter ended with the score tied 7-7.
On third and nine, the Cowboys had a false start. It was the first penalty of the game. After seven runs in a row, Dallas passed, but the toss fell incomplete.
The Cowboys settled for a field goal and a 10-7 lead.
Courtesy: Topps
Dallas kicked off, and Pittsburgh took over at their 32. Bradshaw passed on first down, but the ball fell incomplete after he took a big hit from Ed “Too Tall” Jones. Three runs then netted 24 yards: Bleier got 6, Bradshaw ran for 8, and Harris gained 10.
But surprisingly, instead of continuing to run, the Steelers tried a lateral to receiver John Stallworth. That play lost four yards. Bradshaw recovered, hitting Stallworth with a 13-yard pass reception to make it 3rd and one. When Dallas stopped Harris for no gain, the Steelers decided to go for it on 4th down, but Harris dropped a pass while being hit by Cliff Harris.
Dallas took over at their 36. A run and a pass completion gained eight yards, but a 3rd down pass was incomplete. Dallas punted, and Pittsburgh took possession on their 22.
An incomplete pass and a sack followed a three-yard run. It was clear now that the defenses were beginning to take control of this game.
A fair catch by Golden Richards gave Dallas the ball at their 48. A pass to Preston Pearson put the ball at the Steelers 42, just shy of a first down. A bad exchange resulted in a fumble, but the Cowboys recovered. Preston Pearson then caught a third-down pass giving Dallas a first down at the Steelers 37. The next two plays resulted in a short run and an incompletion. But a third-down reception by reserve running back Charles Young gave the Cowboys a first down on the 21.
It looked like Dallas was in a position to get at least a field goal, but The Steel Curtain rose to the occasion. A pitchout to Newhouse lost three, and two passing attempts resulted in two sacks. Dallas was forced to punt.
A good kick by Mitch Hoopes put the Steelers at their six. After two runs gained just four yards, Bradshaw threw a long pass to Lynn Swann, who made his second spectacular catch of the game, giving the Steelers the ball at the Cowboys 37.
After a first-down pass fell incomplete, Bleier ran for seven, and Harris got 3 and a first down. Bradshaw then completed a 7-yard pass, eluding a fierce pass rush by the Dallas D. But the next two plays gained just one yard, and Pittsburgh set up for a 36-yard field goal and the tie.
The usually reliable Roy Gerela missed that kick, and the half ended with the Cowboys holding a 10-7 lead.
(Look for second half details in Monday’s post.)
