"SUPERBOWL XIV"
Los Angeles Rams vs. Pittsburgh Steelers
The Steelers and the Rams arrived at this Championship Game from opposite directions. In the 14 year history of the Superbowl, never have two teams been so different. The Steelers were the defending champions, they had the best record in football, and came to Pasadena supported by the loudest, most loyal fans in all of football. The Rams on the other hand had the worst record of any team to ever play in the Superbowl. And, unlike the Steelers, they looked at their fans with cynicism and indifference. For these were the same people who booed and insulted them when they were hurt and in second place. The Rams came to the Superbowl with a grim resolve to erase their reputation as a team with no heart and to forever bury their infamous legacy of choking in Championship Games.
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FRANCO HARRIS #32 WALKS UNMOLESTED INTO THE ENDZONE
The Rams scored the first touchdown of Superbowl XIV when Cullen Bryant piled into the endzone giving the Rams an early 7-3 lead over the Steelers. The Steelers answered right back when they drove the ball all the way to the Ram's 1 yard line. Franco runs wide right with Rocky Blier leading the way for a Steeler's touchdown giving the Steelers a 10-7 lead. The Rams would spend the remainder of the first half missing near touchdowns, but they would retrieve some of those points off the toe of Frank Corale as he made 2 field goals giving the Rams a 13-10 lead at Halftime.
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TERRY BRADSHAW THROWS A PERFECT STRIKE WHILE BEING BLITZED BY THE RAMS #64
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SWANN #88 OUTJUMPS HIS TWO PURSUERS FOR THE BALL AND A STEELERS TOUCHDOWN
Terry Bradshaw began the second half with the same curiously conservative approach he had used in the first half nibbling away at the Rams defense with short safe passes to his running backs. But then, like a pool hall hustler who had been trifling with his victim too long, Bradshaw suddenly showed his game. Bradshaw's pass to Lynn Swann was a concise resume of the Steeler attack. Daring and explosive, being able to score from anywhere at anytime. The Rams had two defensive backs covering Swann and a linebacker blitzing Bradshaw and they still could not damage the throw or prevent the catch. This gave the Steelers a 17-13 lead. Surely, this stunning blow, one that has become a Steeler trademark the last two seasons, would finally brush off the pesky Rams. IT DID NOT!!! Ferragamo (#15) took a play from Bradshaw's go for broke book and hit Billy Waddy (#80) for a 50 yard gain. Before the Steelers could recover, the Rams struck again with an Option pass from McCutcheon to Ron Smith (#84) for a touchdown and a 19-17 lead over the Steelers. Maybe it was the fact that nobody gave them much of a chance to win, therefore there wasn't much to lose. Maybe, it was simply the realization by the Rams coaches that their team had to open up on offense to win. Whatever the reason, these new remodeled Rams came from behind for the third time to take the lead. Frank Corale missed the extra point, but the Rams touchdown revealed another facet of their expansive new offense.
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JOHN STALWORTH #82 OUT REACHES #49 ROD PERRY FOR THE TOUCHDOWN CATCH
Time runs out in the third quarter of play. 15 minutes of football remain. The crowd is on its feet in the Rosebowl!! The score, the Rams 19 and the Steelers 17!! Great teams aren't always great. They're just great when they have to be. Bradshaw pumping, firing down field to John Stalworth and Stalworth outreaches Rod Perry (#49) and takes the ball in for the Steelers touchdown giving the Steelers a 24-19 lead. The Steelers loosened up as if the game were over, once again, they were wrong. The Rams summoned up the heart no one thought they had and slowly fought their way towards the Steelers goaline. Fans who withheld their love for so long, suddenly poured it out in cheers for a scrappy underdog who refused to give up. The Rams were on the verge of another score when Ferragamo made his only mistake of the game. He threw an interception to the Steeler's Jack Lambert at the 5:24 mark of the fourth quarter. The real tragedy of the play was the Ram's Billy Waddy was wide open on a post route. By day, the Rams sparkling spirit had kept the game close, but by night, it had faded into the black reality of the Pittsburgh Steelers mustering whatever it takes to win games when most of America is watching.
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STALWORTH #82 OUTRUNS HIS 4 PURSUERS AND CATCHES A BRILLIANT THROW FROM TERRY BRADSHAW
The first long pass to Stalworth had given the Steelers the lead, this one had pointed the way to ultimate victory. And now the Rams hopes start to dim as Pittsburgh is on their way to another world championship. Franco Harris plunges into the endzone for a 1 yard touchdown run giving the Steelers an insurmountable 31-19 lead and Superbowl XIV is history!!!! Superbowl XIV took its shape from the team that lost just as much as the team that won. The Rams earned a dignity in defeat few earn in victory. The Rams earned respect, but the Pittsburgh Steelers won another WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP!!!!!
FINAL SCORE
Pittsburgh 31
Los Angeles 19
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