Super Bowl XIII was an
American football game played on
January 21, 1979 at the Orange Bowl
in Miami
, Florida
to decide
the National Football
League (NFL) champion following the 1978 regular season. This was the
last of five
Super Bowls to be played at
the Orange Bowl.
The
American Football
Conference (AFC) champion
Pittsburgh Steelers (17–2) defeated the
National Football
Conference (NFC) champion
Dallas
Cowboys (14–5), 35–31. It was the first Super Bowl rematch (the
Steelers had previously beaten the Cowboys, 21–17, in
Super Bowl X). The game, which was not decided
until the final minute, has long been considered one of the best
Super Bowls.
Steelers quarterback
Terry Bradshaw
was named
Super Bowl MVP. Despite
throwing one interception, losing two fumbles, and single handedly
keeping the Cowboys in the game in the first half, Bradshaw
completed 17 out of 30 passes for 318 yards and 4 touchdowns. His
318 passing yards and 4 passing touchdowns broke Super Bowl
records. Also, his 75-yard touchdown pass in the second quarter
tied
Johnny Unitas in
Super Bowl V for the longest pass in a Super
Bowl. Bradshaw became the first player since the 1970
AFL-NFL Merger to win both the Super Bowl MVP
and the
AP Most Valuable
Player Award during the same season.
Meanwhile, the Cowboys could not overcome turnovers, drops, and a
controversial penalty during the second half. The Cowboys were the
first defending champion to lose in the Super Bowl. They were also
the first to lose two Super Bowls to the same team (they lost 21–17
to the Steelers in
Super Bowl X). The
Cowboys were the first team to score 30 points or more and still
lose the Super Bowl.
Background
For the 1978–79 season, the NFL extended its schedule from 14
regular season games to 16, and increased the playoffs from an
8-team tournament to 10, creating two extra playoff games. The
three division winners from each conference would be ranked first
through third and be given a week off, and two wild card teams from
each conference, seeded fourth and fifth, would play a playoff game
with the winner going on to play the first seeded team (or, if they
were in the same division, the second seed).
Pittsburgh Steelers
The Steelers joined the Cowboys in their attempt to be the first
team to ever win a third Super Bowl, after wins in
Super Bowl IX and
Super Bowl X. Pittsburgh quarterback
Terry Bradshaw had the best season of his
career, completing 207 of 368 passes for 2,915 yards and 28
touchdowns, with 20 interceptions. He ranked as the second highest
rated passer in the league (84.8), his
28 touchdown passes led the league, and he won the
NFL Most Valuable Player
Award. Wide receivers
Lynn Swann and
John Stallworth provided the team
with a great deep threat. Swann recorded 61 receptions for 880
yards and 11 touchdowns, while Stallworth had 41 receptions for 798
yards and 9 touchdowns. Tight end
Randy
Grossman, who replaced injured starter
Bennie Cunningham for most of the season,
also was a big factor, recording 37 receptions for 448 yards and a
touchdown.
In the Steelers' rushing game, running back
Franco Harris was the team's leading rusher
for the 7th consecutive season, recording 1,082 yards and 8
touchdowns, while also catching 22 passes for another 144 yards.
Fullback
Rocky Bleier had 633 rushing
yards and 5 touchdowns, while also catching 17 passes for 168
yards.
The
Steelers' success on offense was due in large measure to their
stellar offensive line, anchored by future hall of
fame
center Mike
Webster
Although Pittsburgh's "Steel Curtain" defense had some new starters
this season, such as linemen
John
Banaszak and
Steve Furness, and
defensive back
Tony Dungy, they finished
second in the league against the run (allowing 107.8 yards per
game) and ranked third in fewest total yards allowed (4,529). Once
again, defensive tackles
Joe Greene and
L. C.
Greenwood anchored the line, while
Pro Bowl linebackers
Jack Ham and
Jack Lambert combined for 7
interceptions. Dungy lead the team with 6 interceptions, while the
rest of the secondary, defensive backs
Mel
Blount,
Donnie Shell, and
Ron Johnson, combined for 11.
Dallas Cowboys
The Cowboys became the first team to appear in five Super Bowls
(after playing in Super Bowls
V,
VI,
X and
XII). The defending Super Bowl
champions were once again led by quarterback
Roger Staubach. Staubach finished the season
as the top rated passer in the NFL (84.9) by throwing 231 out of
413 completions for 3,190 yards and 25 touchdowns, with 16
interceptions. He also rushed for 182 yards and another touchdown.
Wide receivers
Drew
Pearson and
Tony
Hill provided the deep passing threats, combining for 90
receptions, 1,537 yards, and 7 touchdowns. Tight end
Billy Joe Dupree contributed 34 receptions
for 509 yards and 9 touchdowns. Running back
Tony Dorsett had another fine season, recording
a total of 1703 combined rushing and receiving yards, and scoring a
total of 9 touchdowns. Fullback
Robert
Newhouse and halfback
Preston
Pearson also contributed from the offensive backfield,
combining for 1,326 rushing and receiving yards, while Newhouse
also scored 10 touchdowns. The Cowboys also had a superb offensive
line, led by
Herbert Scott and 12-time
Pro Bowler Rayfield Wright
The Cowboys' "Doomsday Defense" finished the season as the top
ranked defense in the league against the run by only allowing 107.6
yards per game. Pro Bowl linemen
Ed "Too Tall" Jones,
Harvey Martin and
Randy White anchored the
line, while linebackers
Bob Breunig,
D. D. Lewis and
Thomas "Hollywood" Henderson provided solid support.
Their secondary, led by safeties
Cliff
Harris and
Charlie Waters, along
with cornerbacks
Benny Barnes and
Aaron Kyle, combined for 16
interceptions.
The Cowboys started the regular season slowly, winning only six of
their first ten games. But Dallas finished strong, winning their
last six regular season games to post a 12–4 record.
Playoffs
Dallas marched through the playoffs, defeating the
Atlanta Falcons, 27–20, and the
Los Angeles Rams, 28–0. Meanwhile, the
Steelers easily demolished the
Denver
Broncos, 33–10, and the
Houston
Oilers, 34–5.
Super Bowl pregame news and notes
Super Bowl XIII can arguably be called the greatest collection of
NFL talent ever to gather for a game. In addition to Coaches Noll
and Landry, 14 players would end up being voted into the Hall of
Fame: Nine Pittsburgh players: Bradshaw, Harris, Swann, Stallworth,
Webster, Greene, Lambert, Ham, and Blount, and five from Dallas:
Staubach, Dorsett, White, Wright, and Jackie Smith, who the Cowboys
lured out of retirement from the
St.
Louis Cardinals due to injuries to Cowboy tight ends, most
notably,
Jay Saldi. Other Hall of Famers
who participated in the game were from Dallas: GM/President
Tex Schramm, and defensive coordinator
Ernie Stautner, who actually was a
HOF defensive tackle for the Steelers. Additional Hall of Famers
from Pittsburgh included owner
Art
Rooney, Sr., and son
Dan
Rooney.
This was the first Super Bowl in which the designated "home" team
was allowed to select between their team colored jersey or their
white jersey, a rule similar to that of home games in the regular
season and playoffs. Previously, the designated "home" team was
required to wear their team colored jersey. The Cowboys, who
traditionally wear their white jerseys in home games and often only
wear their blue jerseys against teams that have similar policies
for themselves (
most
notably against the
Washington
Redskins and occasionally the
Philadelphia Eagles), were forced to
wear their blue jerseys as the "home" team in
Super Bowl V, which the team lost to the
Baltimore Colts and is widely
believed where the "blue jersey
jinx" started with
America's Team. Not wanting a repeat of that
being the designated "home" team in Super Bowl XIII, the Cowboys
were able to persuade the NFL to change the rule to allow the
"home" team to choose so that they could wear their white jerseys.
The Cowboys would later repeat the option of wearing white jerseys
as the "home" team in
Super Bowl
XXVII, while the Redskins would do so in
Super Bowl XVII and, ironically, the
Steelers (who always wear their black jerseys in home games) in
Super Bowl XL due to the team's
success on the road that season.
Much of the pregame hype surrounded Super Bowl XIII centered around
Cowboys linebacker
Thomas "Hollywood"
Henderson. Henderson caused quite a stir before the NFC
Championship Game by claiming that the Rams had "no class" and the
Cowboys would shut them out. His prediction turned out to be very
accurate; the Cowboys did shut them out, aided by Henderson's
68-yard interception return for a touchdown. In the days leading up
the Super Bowl, Henderson began talking about the Steelers in the
same manner. He predicted another shutout and then made
unflattering comments about several Pittsburgh players. He put down
the talent and the intelligence of Bradshaw, proclaiming
"Bradshaw couldn't spell 'cat' if you spotted him the 'c' and
the 't'." But the Steelers refused to get into a war of words
with Henderson. Greene responded by saying the Steelers didn't need
to say they were the best, they would just go out on the field and
"get the job done.'"
Television and entertainment
The game
was televised in the United States
by NBC, with Curt Gowdy handling play-by-play and color commentators Merlin Olsen and John
Brodie. Dick Enberg served as
the pregame host for the broadcast. Also taking part in NBC's
coverage were
Bryant Gumbel and
Mike Adamle.
This was Gowdy's seventh and final Super Bowl telecast, and his
last major event for NBC before moving to
CBS later in 1979. Enberg had essentially
succeeded Gowdy as NBC's lead NFL play-by-play announcer in the
1978 regular season, and network producers didn't decide until
nearly the last minute which man would get the Super Bowl
call.
NBC preceded the game with the first network broadcast of
Black Sunday, a
1977 motion picture that depicts a terrorist attack on a fictitious
Super Bowl game in the Orange Bowl between Pittsburgh and Dallas
(and which utilized footage shot during
Super Bowl X).
The pregame festivities featured the
Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders and
several military bands.
The Colgate
Thirteen performed the national anthem.
The coin toss ceremony featured Pro Football
Hall of Famer and longtime Chicago
Bears owner/head coach George
Halas.
The halftime show was a "Carnival Salute to Caribbean" with various
Caribbean bands.
Radio
The national radio broadcast of Super Bowl XIII was carried by the
CBS Radio Network, with
Jack Buck and
Hank Stram
calling the action.
Game summary
Both teams entered the game with the best defenses in the league
(the Cowboys only allowed 107.6 rushing yards per game while the
Steelers only allowed 107.8), and each side took advantage of the
other team's mistakes throughout the game. But Dallas could not
overcome their miscues in the second half.
On their opening drive, the Cowboys advanced to the Pittsburgh
38-yard line, with running back
Tony
Dorsett gaining 38 yards off 3 running plays. But they lost the
ball on a fumbled handoff while attempting to fool the Steelers
defense with a
reverse-pass
play. Receiver
Drew
Pearson later explained "We practiced that play for three
weeks. It is designed for me to hit Billy Joe 15 to 17 yards
downfield. We practiced the play so much it was unbelievable we
could fumble it. I expected the handoff a bit lower, but I should
have had it. Billy Joe was in the process of breaking into the
clear when the fumble occurred."
[4980] The play was similar to the near-turnover by
Butch Johnson in
the previous
game.
After defensive lineman John Banaszak recovered the loose ball on
the Pittsburgh 47-yard line, the Steelers attempted 2 running plays
with running back
Franco Harris
carrying the ball, but only gained 1 yard. Then on third down, wide
receiver
John Stallworth caught a
12-yard pass to the Cowboys' 40-yard line. Then after throwing an
incomplete pass,
Terry Bradshaw
completed 2 consecutive passes, the second one a 28-yard touchdown
completion to Stallworth to take a 7–0 lead.
On their next drive, the Cowboys responded by advancing to the
Steelers 39-yard line, but were pushed back to their own 39-yard
line after quarterback
Roger Staubach
was sacked twice, and they were forced to punt. Then on the
Steelers' ensuing drive, Bradshaw threw a 22-yard pass to Harris
and followed it up with a 13-yard pass to receiver
Lynn Swann to move the ball to the Dallas 30-yard
line. But on the next play, Dallas linebacker
D. D. Lewis ended the drive by
intercepting a pass intended for Stallworth.
With a little more than a minute to go in the period, Bradshaw
fumbled the ball while being sacked by Cowboys lineman
Harvey Martin, and defensive end
Ed "Too Tall" Jones recovered
it. Staubach then capitalized on Bradshaw's mistake three plays
later with a 39-yard scoring strike to receiver Tony Hill, tying
the game at 7 as the first quarter expired. Pittsburgh sent eight
men on an all-out
blitz,
but Staubach got the pass away just before he was hit by Steelers'
safety
Mike Wagner. Hill beat
Donnie Shell in single-coverage and scored the
only first quarter touchdown surrendered by Pittsburgh all
season(In Super Bowl X, the Cowboys also scored a first quarter
touchdown against a Steeler team that hadn't permitted one all
year).
The Steelers took possession at the start of the second quarter and
advanced to their own 48-yard line. Dallas linebackers
Mike Hegman and
Thomas
"Hollywood" Henderson then combined to score a touchdown on an
unusual play. After taking the snap from his 48, Bradshaw collided
with Franco Harris and the ball popped loose. Bradshaw scooped it
up and rolled to his right, looking to pass, but Hegman ripped the
ball out of Bradshaw's hands as Henderson was tackling him and
returned the fumble 37 yards for a touchdown, giving the Cowboys a
14–7 lead.
The Cowboys lead didn’t last long. On the third play of
Pittsburgh's ensuing possession, Stallworth caught a pass from
Bradshaw at the Steelers 35-yard line. He then broke a tackle from
defensive back
Aaron Kyle and outraced
every other defender to the end zone, turning a simple 10-yard pass
into a 75-yard touchdown completion to tie the score, 14–14.
Bradshaw later explained that Stallworth was not even the primary
receiver on the play: "I was going to Lynn Swann on the post," he
said, "but the Cowboys covered Swann and left Stallworth open. I
laid the ball out there and it should have gone for about 15 yards,
but Stallworth broke the tackle and went all the way."
[4981]
Pittsburgh's "Steel Curtain" defense then dominated the Dallas
offense on their ensuing drive. First, Banaszak tackled fullback
Robert Newhouse for 4-yard loss.
Next, linebacker
Jack Ham tackled Dorsett
for a 3-yard loss on an attempted
sweep. On third down, defensive tackle
Joe Greene sacked
Staubach, forcing a fumble that bounced through the hands of
Steelers' defensive lineman
Steve
Furness. Cowboys lineman
Tom
Rafferty eventually recovered at the Dallas 13-yard line.
Theo Bell then returned
Danny White's eunsuing 38-yard punt 3 yards to
the Dallas 38-yard line.
The Steelers began their ensuing drive with Bradshaw's 26-yard
completion to Swann. Jones tackled Harris for an 8-yard loss on the
next play, but a subsequent holding penalty on Henderson gave
Pittsburgh a first down at the Dallas 25-yard line. However, after
an incomplete pass and a 2-yard run by Harris, Hegman sacked
Bradshaw for an 11-yard loss on third down, pushing the ball back
to the 34-yard line. The Steelers then came up empty after kicker
Roy Gerela's 51-yard field goal attempt
hit the crossbar.
With less than two minutes remaining in the half, Dallas advanced
to the Pittsburgh 32-yard line, after starting from their own
34-yard line. But Pittsburgh defensive back
Mel Blount intercepted a pass from Staubach and
returned it 13 yards to the 29, with a personal foul on Dallas
tight end
Billy Joe Dupree adding
another 15 yards and giving the Steelers the ball at their own
44-yard line. With time running out, Bradshaw completed 2 passes to
Swann for gains of 29 and 21 yards, moving the ball to the 16-yard
line with 40 seconds left in the half. Then after throwing an
incomplete pass, Harris ran the ball to the 7-yard line. Then with
just 26 seconds left, Bradshaw completed a 7-yard touchdown pass to
fullback
Rocky Bleier, giving the
Steelers a 21–14 lead at halftime.
The torrid scoring pace slowed during much of the third quarter, as
both teams began to assert themselves on the defensive side of the
ball. But late in the quarter, a 12-yard punt return by Cowboys
receiver
Butch Johnson gave Dallas
good field position on their 42-yard line. The Cowboys subsequently
drove down to the Steelers 10-yard line, mostly with Dorsett's
rushing. Then on third down with less than three minutes remaining
in the period, Staubach spotted 38-year old reserve tight end
Jackie Smith wide open in the end zone
and threw him the ball. The pass was a little behind Smith, but it
was catchable. However, Smith dropped the pass and the Cowboys had
to settle for a field goal from kicker
Rafael Septien, cutting their deficit to
21–17.
Though Smith played 16 years in the league
and is now enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, he is perhaps best known for his embarrassing
blunder on the sport's biggest stage.
Two controversial penalties early in the fourth quarter paved the
way for the Steelers to score 14 unanswered points. The Steelers
advanced to their own 44-yard line after a crucial 3rd down pass
from Bradshaw to tight end
Randy
Grossman, a 13-yard pass to Swann, and a 5-yard run by Harris.
Bradshaw then attempted a pass to Swann, but the receiver collided
with Cowboys defensive back
Benny
Barnes and fell to the ground as the ball rolled incomplete.
However, official
Fred Swearingen
called Barnes for pass interference. Replays showed that it could
have been incidental contact, as Swann seemed to run into Barnes.
The penalty gave Pittsburgh a first down at Dallas' 23-yard
line.
Two plays later, the Steelers faced 3rd down and 4 from the Dallas
17. Henderson sacked Bradshaw for a 12-yard loss, but the play was
nullified by a delay of game penalty on Pittsburgh, bringing up 3rd
down and 9 instead of a fourth down. Replays clearly showed the
whistle blew before the play's onset, plus most of the players
pulled up and stopped playing after a whistle sounded, but
Henderson claimed, "I didn't hear a whistle until after I had
knocked Bradshaw down. The same guy (Swearingen) made that call
too. Who is that guy?" " Franco Harris confronted Henderson for
taunting Bradshaw after the whistle, and on the next play, Bradshaw
handed the ball off to Harris, who raced untouched up the middle
for a 22-yard touchdown run. The score increased Pittsburgh's lead
to 28–17.
The ensuing squib kickoff by Gerela bounced to Cowboy lineman
Randy White at the
24-yard line. White, who was playing the game with a cast on his
broken left hand, fumbled the ball before being hit by
Tony Dungy and Pittsburgh linebacker
Dennis Winston recovered the ball at the
Dallas 18-yard line. On the next play, Bradshaw threw an 18-yard
touchdown pass to Swann, increasing the Steelers' lead to 35–17
with less than 7 minutes left in the game.
Some of the Steelers were already celebrating victory on the
sidelines, but the Cowboys refused to give up. On their next drive,
Dallas drove 89 yards in 8 plays to score on Staubach's 7-yard
touchdown pass to Dupree. Then after Dallas'
Dennis Thurman recovered an onside kick at
2:19, Drew Pearson caught 2 passes for gains of 22 and 25 yards as
the Cowboys drove 52 yards in 9 plays to score on Staubach's 4-yard
touchdown pass to Butch Johnson. With the ensuing extra point, the
score was cut to 35–31 with just 0:22 left in the game.
But the Cowboys' second onside kick attempt was unsuccessful.
Bleier recovered the ball and the Steelers were able to run out the
clock to win the game.
Swann was the leading receiver in the game with 7 receptions for
124 yards and a touchdown. Stallworth recorded 115 yards and a
touchdown off just 3 receptions. Stallworth and Swann became the
first pair of teammates to each have 100 yards receiving in a Super
Bowl and first time two receivers did it in the same game. Dorsett
was the top rusher of the game with 96 rushing yards, and also
caught 5 passes for 44 yards. Harris was Pittsburgh's leading
rusher with 68 yards, and he caught a pass for 22 yards. Staubach
finished the game with exactly as many passing attempts (30) and
completions (17) as Bradshaw, good for 228 passing yards, 3
touchdowns, and 1 interception. Butch Johnson caught 2 passes for
30 yards and a touchdown, returned 3 kickoffs for 63 yards, and
gained 33 yards on 2 punt returns, giving him 126 total
yards.
Scoring summary
- PIT - TD: John Stallworth 28 yard pass from Terry Bradshaw (Roy
Gerela kick) 7-0 PIT
- DAL - TD: Tony Hill 39 yard pass from Roger Staubach (Rafael
Septien kick) 7-7 tie
- DAL - TD: Mike Hegman 37 yard fumble return (Rafael Septien
kick) 14-7 DAL
- PIT - TD: John Stallworth 75 yard pass from Terry Bradshaw (Roy
Gerela kick) 14-14 tie
- PIT - TD: Rocky Bleier 7 yard pass from Terry Bradshaw (Roy
Gerela kick) 21-14 PIT
- DAL - FG: Rafael Septien 27 yards 21-17
PIT
- PIT - TD: Franco Harris 22 yard run (Roy Gerela kick)
28-17 PIT
- PIT - TD: Lynn Swann 18 yard pass from Terry Bradshaw (Roy
Gerela kick) 35-17 PIT
- DAL - TD: Billy Joe DuPree 7 yard pass from Roger Staubach
(Rafael Septien kick) 35-24 PIT
- DAL - TD: Butch Johnson 4 yard pass from Roger Staubach (Rafael
Septien kick) 35-31 PIT
Quotes
Starting lineups
Pittsburgh Dallas
OFFENSE
John Stallworth 82 WR Tony Hill 80
Jon Kolb 55 LT Pat Donovan 67
Sam Davis 57 LG Herbert Scott 68
Mike Webster 52 C John Fitzgerald 62
Gerry Mullins 72 RG Tom Rafferty 64
Ray Pinney 74 RT Rayfield Wright 70
Randy Grossman 84 TE Billy Joe Dupree 89
Lynn Swann 88 WR Drew Pearson 88
Terry Bradshaw 12 QB Roger Staubach 12
Rocky Bleier 20 FB Robert Newhouse 44
Franco Harris 32 RB Tony Dorsett 33
DEFENSE
L.C. Greenwood 68 LE Ed "Too Tall" Jones 72
Joe Greene 75 DT Larry Cole 63
Steve Furness 64 DT Randy White 54
John Banaszak 76 RE Harvey Martin 79
Jack Ham 59 LLB Thomas "Hollywood" Henderson 56
Jack Lambert 58 MLB Bob Breunig 53
Loren Toews 51 RLB D. D. Lewis 50
Ron Johnson 29 LCB Benny Barnes 31
Mel Blount 47 RCB Aaron Kyle 25
Donnie Shell 31 SS Charlie Waters 41
Mike Wagner 23 FS Cliff Harris 43
Officials
Game time and weather conditions
See also
References
- Pittsburgh defensive back Tony Dungy went on to coach the Indianapolis
Colts to victory in Super Bowl XLI, becoming the third person in
the history of NFL (along with Mike Ditka and Tom Flores) to win Super Bowls as a player and a
head coach.
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