Whichever teams wins this evening will join the rarefied air of franchises with four Super Bowl wins. Here is a quick rundown.

All-Time Super Bowl Wins

• 6 – Pittsburgh Steelers
• 5 – San Francisco 49ers, Dallas Cowboys
• 4 – Green Bay Packers
• 3 – New York Giants, New England Patriots, Oakland/LA Raiders, Washington Redskins
• 2 – Indianapolis/Baltimore Colts, Miami Dolphins, Denver Broncos
• 1 – Ravens, Jets, Bucs, Saints, Bears, Chiefs, Rams

As you can see, either the Giants or the Patriots will be joining NFL franchise royalty with a win today. Only the Packers, Cowboys, 49ers, and Steelers have won four or more Super Bowls. One of the two Super Bowl XLVI participants will join that elite list today.

To see the complete table of all-time Super Bowl wins and every team’s Super Bowl record, check out our Most Super Bowls and Team Super Bowl Records post.

New England Patriots Super Bowl Record

The New England Patriots are 3-3 all-time in the Super Bowl.

Earlier this week, Josh Tinley broke down the Patriots up and down history in the biggest of Big Games. Click to view Josh’s post on the New England Patriots’ Super Bowl history. He breaks down every game, the score, the location, who won the MVP, and more.

New York Giants Super Bowl Record

The New York Giants are 3-1 all-time in the Super Bowl, losing only their meeting with the Ravens.

Earlier this week, Josh also broke down the Giants’ history in the Super Bow, which features fewer games than the Patriots but a much higher winning percentage. Click to view Josh’s post on the New York Giants’ Super Bowl history, where he again breaks down all of the information you need.

Now let’s all settle in and see who gets Super Bowl victory #4 today.

While we wait, here are 46 trivial facts about the history of the Super Bowl, including the most interesting Super Bowl fact of all-time at the end.

Early Super Bowl History and Facts

1. The first Super Bowl officially called the “Super Bowl” was Super Bowl III. The first two games were called the “AFL-NFL Championship Game.”

2. According to AFL co-founder and former Kansas City Chiefs owner Lamar Hunt, the name “Super Bowl” was inspired by the Super Ball, a children’s toy sold by Wham-O.

3. The Green Bay Packers embarrassed their AFL opponents in the first two Super Bowls (AFL-NFL Championship Games). The Packers beat the Chiefs 35-10 in Super Bowl I and the Raiders 33-14 in Super Bowl II.

4. Starting with Super Bowl III, the AFL or AFC (the former AFL teams plus the Colts, Steelers, and Browns) won 11 of 13 Super Bowls. The only NFC team to win during that time was the Dallas Cowboys (Super Bowls VI and XII).

All-Time Super Bowl Wins and Records

(Note: click to see MSF’s complete rundown of every team’s all-time Super Bowl record.)

5. In the 1980s and 1990s the NFC won 13 consecutive Super Bowls, from Super Bowl XIX (49ers) through Super Bowl XXXI (Packers).

6. 14 of the 32 NFL teams have never won a Super Bowl: the Bengals, Bills, Browns, Cardinals, Chargers, Eagles, Falcons, Jaguars, Lions, Panthers, Seahawks, Texans, Titans/Oilers, and Vikings. (Technically the franchise that was the Cleveland Browns won Super Bowl XXXV as the Baltimore Ravens, but the NFL agreed that the history and records of the original Browns team would remain in Cleveland even as the franchise moved to Baltimore.)

7. Only 4 of the 32 NFL teams have never played in a Super Bowl: the Browns, Jaguars, Lions, and Texans.

8. The Buffalo Bills and Minnesota Vikings have the distinction of playing in the most Super Bowls without winning one. Both teams have an 0-4 record in the Big Game.

The Minnesota Vikings losing the first of four Super Bowls. (Photo: Walter Iooss Jr./SI)

9. The Bengals and Eagles are the only two other teams to play in multiple Super Bowls without winning. Both are 0-2.

10. The Denver Broncos are the only other team to have lost 4 Super Bowls. The Broncos’ Super Bowl record is 2-4.

11. Despite never winning a Super Bowl, the Browns, Cardinals, Eagles, and Lions all won pre-Super Bowl NFL Championships. The Browns won in 1950, 1954, 1955, and 1964; the Cardinals, when they played in Chicago, won in 1947; the Eagles won in 1948, 1949, and 1960; the Lions won in 1935, 1952, 1953, and 1957.

12. The Browns also won 4 championships in the All-America Football Conference, before that league folded and the NFL swallowed three of its teams in 1949. The Browns won titles in 1946, 1947, 1948, and 1949, the only years the league was in operation.

13. Despite never winning a Super Bowl, the Bills, Chargers, and Oilers (now the Titans) all won pre-Super Bowl AFL Championships. The Bills won in 1964 and 1965; the Chargers won in 1963; the Oilers won in 1960 and 1961.

14. The San Francisco 49ers are the only team to have played in multiple Super Bowls and won every time. The Niners are 5-0 in the Big Game.

15. 4 other teams are undefeated in the Super Bowl. All are 1-0: the Buccaneers, Jets, Ravens, and Saints.

16. The Pittsburgh Steelers have won 6 Super Bowls, the most of any team.

17. The 49ers and Cowboys each have won 5 Super Bowls.

18. The Packers are the only team to have won exactly 4 Super Bowls.

19. The Giants, Patriots, Raiders, and Redskins have each won 3 Super Bowls.

20. The Steelers and Cowboys have made the most Super Bowl appearances with 8 apiece.

21. The Patriots and Broncos have each played in 6 Super Bowls.

22. The 49ers, Packers, Raiders, Redskins, and Dolphins have each played in 5.

Super Bowl History Potpourri

23. The Raiders and Colts are the only teams to relocate and win Super Bowls from both locations. The Oakland Raiders won Super Bowls XI and XV; the Los Angeles Raiders won Super Bowl XVIII. The Baltimore Colts won Super Bowl V; the Indianapolis Colts won Super Bowl XLI.

24. The Colts suffered through the longest drought between Super Bowl wins. 36 years passed between the Baltimore Colts’ victory in Super Bowl V and the Indianapolis Colts’ win in Super Bowl XLI.

25. Joe Montana of the 49ers has been named Super Bowl MVP 3 times, more than any other player.

26. Bart Starr (Packers), Terry Bradshaw (Steelers), and Tom Brady (Patriots) each have been named MVP twice. No one else has won the award more than once.

27. Desmond Howard of the Packers, Super Bowl XXXI, was the only player to win Super Bowl MVP while playing primarily on special teams.

Super Bowl City and Venue History and Facts

28. The Miami area has hosted the most Super Bowls, 10. The first Miami Super Bowl was Super Bowl II, at the Orange Bowl. The most recent was Super Bowl XLIV at Sun Life Stadium.

29. New Orleans has hosted 9 Super Bowls. The Big Easy will host its tenth next year, putting it in a tie with Miami.

30. The Los Angeles area has hosted 7 Super Bowls, but none since 1993. The area has not been home to an NFL team since the Raiders and Rams left in 1995.

31. The Tampa Bay area has hosted 4 Super Bowls. San Diego and the Phoenix area have hosted 3 each.

32. The Louisiana Superdome has hosted 6 Super Bowls, more than any other venue.

The Louisiana (Mercedes-Benz) Superdome, home of 6 Super Bowls.

33. The Orange Bowl and Sun Life (or Joe Robbie or Pro Player) Stadium have hosted 5 each.

34. The only venues to host a Super Bowl despite never being the home field of an NFL/AFL team were the Rose Bowl—host of Super Bowls XI, XIV, XVII, XXI, and XXVII—and Stanford Stadium, which hosted Super Bowl XIX.

35. The only other venue to host a Super Bowl despite not being the current home of an NFL team was Rice Stadium in Houston. The Oilers played there from 1965-1967 before the Astrodome opened. Rice Stadium hosted Super Bowl VIII in 1974.

36. No team has ever played a Super Bowl in its home stadium, but two have played Super Bowls in their home cities (or metropolitan areas): the Los Angeles Rams lost to the Steelers in Super Bowl XIV at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena; the San Francisco 49ers beat the Miami Dolphins in Super Bowl XIX at Stanford Stadium.

Super Bowl Broadcast History and Facts

37. This year’s broadcast will be the 17th on NBC. After tonight, NBC will be tied with CBS for the most Super Bowl broadcasts. CBS gets the game next year.

38. ABC has broadcast 7 Super Bowls. Fox has broadcast 6. The NFL’s current TV deal, which goes through Super Bowl LVII in 2023, does not include ABC, so the next 12 games (including tonight’s game) will rotate between NBC, CBS, and Fox.

39. 22 of the 47 highest rated shows in American television history are Super Bowls.

40. The number of total households watching the Super Bowl has been on an upward trend throughout the game’s history. Last year’s Super Bowl XLV drew 111 million viewers, making it the most watched show in American television history.

41. A 30-second ad during Super Bowl XLVI costs as much as $3.5 million.

Super Bowl Entertainment History and Facts

42. College marching bands provided halftime entertainment at 7 of the first 8 Super Bowls. Some were joined by celebrities. For example, at Super Bowl VIII in Houston, the University of Texas Marching Band accompanied Judy Mallet (Miss Texas 1973), who played the fiddle. Carol Channing joined the Southern University Marching Band for halftime of Super Bowl IV in New Orleans.

43. The Grambling Marching Band and Up With People—the international volunteer and education organization that assembles multi-national casts for musical performances—have each done 4 Super Bowl halftime shows.

Up With People, doing the halftime show at Super Bowl XIV.

44. 5 performers have done the national anthem at two Super Bowls: the Grambling Marching Band (II and IX); the U.S. Air Force Academy Chorale (VI and, joining the other academy choirs, XXXIX); Aaron Neville (XXIV and, with Aretha Franklin and Dr. John, XLV); Billy Joel (XXIII and XLI); and Marlee Matlin, who did the American Sign Language anthem at Super Bowls XXVII and XLI.

45. The pilot episode of The Wonder Years aired on ABC immediately after Super Bowl XXII.

The Most Interesting Super Bowl Fact Ever

46. This final fact technically isn’t about the Super Bowl but about the NFL Championship Game. I’m going to include it anyway, because it’s the most interesting factoid I have.

In 1961 Packers star halfback Paul Hornung nearly missed the NFL Championship Game because he was called up to active duty by the Army. Packers coach Vince Lombardi called President John F. Kennedy asking that he grant leave for Hornung until after the title game.

Kennedy agreed, saying, “Paul Hornung isn’t going to win the war on Sunday, but the football fans of this country deserve the two best teams on the field that day.”

I’m a Packers fan, so I’ve been on both sides of the spectrum. Last season, I could not wait for the Super Bowl to come, the anticipation building each and every day.

This season? I can’t wait for it to be over.

Super Bowl Quarterbacks

The one thing that the down time between the games does provide is time to analyze and break down individual matchups, specifically at quarterback.

This year’s Super Bowl QB matchup, between Tom Brady and Eli Manning and their four combined rings, is a great one. It’s perhaps one of the most highly anticipated QB matchups in Super Bowl history.

Super Bowl quarterbacks Tom Brady and Eli Manning (Charles Krupa, AP)

But where does Eli-Brady XLVI rank all time?

What I’m going to do is rank all 46 quarterback match-ups in the history of the Super Bowl, based on what the stature of each quarterback was entering the game. I’ll look at where each quarterback was at the moment we are in right now, before the game, rather than how they were viewed after it.

The rankings here are based on the build-up to the Super Bowl, not the game itself.  For example, last season Aaron Rodgers was a still-unproven quarterback looking to break out of Brett Favre’s shadow, not the Super Bowl champion, MVP-caliber quarterback he is today. I’ll also put the most stock in previous Super Bowl experience as well as recent individual play. Make sense?  Let’s get started.

(And I won’t rank my hypothetical Aaron Rodgers vs. TJ Yates match-up, although it obviously would have been No. 1.)

Super Bowl QB Matchups: The 8 Greatest

#1 – Super Bowl XIX: Joe Montana (49ers) vs. Dan Marino (Dolphins)

The 15-1 49ers were making their second Super Bowl appearance in four years under Montana,  while Marino had one of the greatest statistical seasons ever, throwing for a then-record 5,084 yards that stood for over 25 years.

This matchup was the ultimate combination of proven Super Bowl success (Montana’s ’81 Super Bowl), superlative statistical success (Marino’s record, just broken this year), rising star power, and quarterback swagger.

First (and only) time Super Bowl quarterback Dan Marino v Super Bowl QB legend Joe Montana

Montana v Marino may not have been the most decorated QB matchup in NFL history going into the game, but it was certainly one of the most intriguing. I say the most intriguing ever.

#2 – Super Bowl XXXII: Brett Favre (Green Bay) vs. John Elway (Denver)

Looking at this match-up in it’s context, it’s just incredible.

Favre was coming off his third MVP season, with 3,867 yards and 35 touchdowns, as well as a Super Bowl victory the previous year. Elway, then 37, was at the tail end of his career, but still was considered one of the premier quarterbacks in the league.

This was the Broncos’ fourth of five Super Bowl appearances under Elway, having lost three in the first decade-plus of his career. It was the MVP gunslinger looking to repeat against the future Hall of Famer, making it great, but only good for second-best.

 #3 – Super Bowl XIII: Terry Bradshaw (Steelers) vs. Roger Staubach (Cowboys)

Bradshaw not only had two Super Bowl wins on his resume, but he also had an MVP season in 1978. To win his third Super Bowl, Bradshaw would have to lead the Steelers past two-time Super Bowl winner Roger Staubach and the defending champion Cowboys, who had just rolled over the Rams 28-0 in the NFC championship game.

Very close to being a top-two game, and lost out by the slimmest of margins.

#4 – Super Bowl XXIV: Joe Montana (49ers) vs. John Elway (Broncos)

Montana already had three Super Bowl wins on his resume, while Elway was finally looking to break through in the win column after losing his first two.

Montana won the MVP that season as the Niners went 14-2; Elway threw for 385 yards against Cleveland in the AFC Championship to lead Denver to its third Super Bowl in four years.

The result was a lopsided San Fran win (55-10) but the quarterback match-up heading into the game was among the best ever.

#5 – Super Bowl I: Bart Starr (Packers) vs. Len Dawson (Chiefs)

It may have been just the first championship game pitting the AFL champion against the NFL champion, but it by no means the beginning of Starr’s and Dawson’s careers. Dawson was the top rated passer in the AFL that season as well as the 1962 AFL MVP, while Starr had led the Packers to three of the previous five NFL championships.

Both went on to be Hall of Famers, and having the first Super Bowl feature such great talent helped pave the way for the growth of the NFL.

#6 – Super Bowl X: Terry Bradshaw (Steelers) vs. Roger Staubach (Cowboys)

Both quarterbacks were Super Bowl champions at this point, but their rematch three years later was a bit more anticipated. Aren’t they always?

#7 – Super Bowl XXVII: Troy Aikman (Cowboys) vs. Jim Kelly (Bills)

This matchup was a repeat of the year before, and it was Kelly’s fourth straight Super Bowl appearance, while Aikman had earned Super Bowl MVP honors the season before.

The question was whether or not Dallas would be able to repeat, as Aikman had played phenomenally in the NFC Championship game against San Francisco but had left the game with a concussion. Kelly was clearly playing at a high level, as Buffalo had gone 12-4 that season, but the question remained whether he would finally be able to win the big one.

#8 – Super Bowl XLVI: Tom Brady (Patriots) vs. Eli Manning (Giants)

This is where I think this year’s Super Bowl quarterback matchup ranks.

There are obviously plenty of people talking about it, especially since it’s the rematch of Super Bowl 42. It is Brady’s chance to cement himself as one of the top-3 quarterbacks of all time, while a win for Eli could push him into permanent elite conversation.

All-Time Super Bowl Quarterback Matchups Poll

Let’s take a quick poll break. The top 8 pretty much has it all: both of the Staubach-Bradshaw matchups, one each of the Aikman-Kelly and Brady-Manning matchups, as well as legends like Montana, Marino, Favre, Elway, Starr, and Dawson.

You’ve seen my top 8. Which one do you think should be #1?

Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post's poll.

Super Bowl QB Matchups: The Best Of The Rest

#9 – Super Bowl VIII: Bob Griese (Dolphins) vs. Fran Tarkenton (Vikings)

Griese led Miami, in the year after he led the Dolphins to a perfect season, to a third straight Super Bowl appearance, the first team to accomplish such a feat. Minnesota was perhaps better known for the “Purple People Eaters” on defense, they did feature Fran Tarkenton, a future Hall-of-Famer in his own right.

#10 – Super Bowl XXIII: Joe Montana (49ers) vs. Boomer Esiason (Bengals)

While Montana had the 49ers in the Super Bowl for the third time in eight seasons, it was Esiason who was the league MVP in 1988. The game was good too, with Montana leading San Fran on the “Joe Cool” drive to win the game.

#11 – Super Bowl XI: Ken Stabler (Raiders) vs. Fran Tarkenton (Vikings)

Tarkenton was the headliner of this matchup, who at age 36 had led the Vikings to their third Super Bowl in four years. But Stabler led Oakland to a 15-1 record entering the game, and The Snake had also won the MVP just two years prior, in 1974.

#12 – Super Bowl XLIII: Ben Roethlisberger (Steelers) vs. Kurt Warner (Cardinals)

Another instance of two previous Super Bowl-winning quarterbacks competing against each other.

Roethlisberger had Pittsburgh in its second Super Bowl in four years, but Warner, in his third Super Bowl appearance, was the story. He had to earn the starting job from Matt Leinart and had Arizona in the playoffs at just 9-7. He played spectacular in the playoffs, however, leading the Cardinals to 30-plus points in each of the three playoff games up to that point.

#13 – Super Bowl XLIV: Drew Brees (Saints) vs. Peyton Manning (Colts)

Brees-Manning was perhaps the better straight quarterback match-up than Roethlisberger-Warner the season before, but this was Brees’ first appearance in a Super Bowl, so he did not have the stature he does now.

Still, Manning was the MVP that season, and Brees was no slouch, throwing for 4,338 yards and had a passer rating of 109.6, so this was a highly anticipated matchup between two prolific quarterbacks.

#14 – Super Bowl XXVII: Troy Aikman (Cowboys) vs. Jim Kelly (Bills)

Aikman’s first Super Bowl, Kelly’s third straight. Better the next year.

#15 – Super Bowl IX: Terry Bradshaw (Steelers) vs. Fran Tarkenton (Vikings)

Perhaps the best defensive matchup ever, featuring the Steel Curtain against the Purple People Eaters, but Tarkenton was in his second straight Super Bowl and Bradshaw was in the middle of his Hall of Fame career.

#16 – Super Bowl XXVIII: Jim Plunkett (Raiders) vs. Joe Theismann (Redskins)

Maybe not the most elite of matchups from a name value perspective, but both already had a Super Bowl win on their resume entering the game, which had only happened twice to date.

#17 – Super Bowl XXXIX: Tom Brady (Patriots) vs. Donovan McNabb (Eagles)

Brady was playing in his third Super Bowl in four years against a perennial Pro Bowler in McNabb playing in his first.

#18 – Super Bowl XLVI: Eli Manning (Giants) vs. Tom Brady (Patriots)

The build-up was there based on the Patriots being 18-0 at the time, but there were serious doubts about Eli Manning. Why does everybody doubt this kid again?

Eli Manning finally earned some respect by leading the Giants to a Super Bowl 42 upset of New England. He can gain even more respect on Sunday.

#19 – Super Bowl VI: Roger Staubach (Cowboys) vs. Bob Griese (Dolphins)

The first Super Bowl appearance for each of these quarterbacks, at least one of whom would appear in five of the next seven Super Bowls.

#20 – Super Bowl XLV: Aaron Rodgers (Packers) vs. Ben Roethlisberger (Steelers)

This ranking is actually based of it being Roethlisberger’s third Super Bowl appearance, and it came in the midst of Rodgers’ ascendance to one of the game’s elite, but he wasn’t truly there until this game was played.

#21 – Super Bowl II: Bart Starr (Packers) vs. Daryle Lamonica (Raiders)

Lamonica was that season’s (1967) AFL MVP, and that Starr guy was pretty good too.

#22 – Super Bowl XXXI: Brett Favre (Packers) vs. Drew Bledsoe (Patriots)

The two had combined for six Pro Bowls plus two MVPs, both of which were awarded to Favre, including his second straight in 1996.

#23 – Super Bowl XXI: Phil Simms (Giants) vs. John Elway (Broncos)

This was Elway’s first Super Bowl, on the heels of The Drive, but the Broncos ran into Simms’ 14-2 Giants, better known for the Lawrence Taylor-led defense.

 #24 – Super Bowl XVI: Joe Montana (49ers) vs. Ken Anderson (Bengals)

Both were young quarterbacks coming into their own, and while Montana would eventually win four Super Bowls, Anderson was the 1981 MVP.

#25 – Super Bowl XXX: Troy Aikman (Cowboys) vs. Neil O’Donnell (Steelers)

Aikman’s third appearance in four years, while O’Donnell was an effective manager of 11-5 Pittsburgh, throwing for just under 3,000 yards and 17 touchdowns against just seven interceptions.

#26 – Super Bowl XII: Roger Staubach (Cowboys) vs. Craig Morton (Broncos)

Both quarterbacks’ second Super Bowl appearance, with Staubach leading Dallas to the win in Super Bowl VI and Morton coming up short for those same Cowboys in Super Bowl V.

#27 – Super Bowl XXVI: Mark Rypien (Redskins) vs. Jim Kelly (Bills)

Kelly was making his second straight Super Bowl appearance, while Rypien led the NFC in passer rating at 97.9 with protection from “The Hogs”.

#28 – Super Bowl XXXIII: John Elway (Broncos) vs. Chris Chandler (Falcons)

Chandler led the Falcons to a surprising 14-2, but Elway’s fifth Super Bowl appearance, and second straight, was the talk.

#29 – Super Bowl XXXIX: Steve Young (49ers) vs. Stan Humphries (Chargers)

Humphries had the surprise Chargers in the Super Bowl, but this was about Steve Young finally getting his shot at a title and monkey off his back.

Steve Young finally became a Super Bowl-winning quarterback and emerged from Joe Montana's considerable shadow with a historic performance against the Chargers.

#30 – Super Bowl VII: Bob Griese (Dolphins) vs. Billy Kilmer (Redskins)

Griese was looking to avenge the Super Bowl loss and did so with a perfect Dolphins team; and then there was Billy Kilmer, and you don’t know who he is either.

#31 – Super Bowl III: Joe Namath (Jets) vs. Earl Morrall (Colts)

Namath’s guarantee is famous, but he was a slightly-above-average quarterback on the field despite his star power, while Morrall was filling in for an injured Johnny Unitas.

#32  - Super Bowl XIV: Terry Bradshaw (Steelers) vs. Vince Ferragamo (Rams)

Ferragamo was a back-up for Pat Haden and was not great, bringing down the fact that Bradshaw was playing in his fourth Super Bowl.

#33 – Super Bowl XV: Jim Plunkett (Raiders) vs. Ron Jaworski (Eagles)

Two quarterbacks you remember being as better as they actually were.

#34 – Super Bowl IV: Len Dawson (Chiefs) vs. Joe Kapp (Vikings)

Three years after losing to Bart Starr, Dawson finally got his win.

#35 – Super Bowl XXII: Doug Williams (Redskins) vs. John Elway (Broncos)

Williams was fortunate to have a loaded Redskins team, while Elway had Denver in the Super Bowl for a second straight year.

#36 – Super Bowl XXXIV: Kurt Warner (Rams) vs. Steve McNair (Titans)

Warner was the engineer of the “Greatest Show on Turf,” but Eddie George was the main threat for Tennessee.

#37 – Super Bowl XXXVI: Tom Brady (Patriots) vs. Kurt Warner (Rams)

2001 Tom Brady was just the guy who took over for Drew Bledsoe, not the 2012 Tom Brady he is today.

#38 – Super Bowl XL: Ben Roethlisberger (Steelers) vs. Matt Hasselbeck (Seahawks)

Big Ben was still somewhat unproven in his second year, and while Hasselbeck was efficient for Seattle, MVP Shaun Alexander was the driving force.

#39 – Super Bowl XXV: Jeff Hostetler (Giants) vs. Jim Kelly (Bills)

Only Kelly’s first Super Bowl, and Hostetler was an injury replacement for Phil Simms.

#40 – Super Bowl V: Johnny Unitas (Colts) vs. Craig Morton (Cowboys)

Unitas was 37, and Morton was in a QB controversy all season with Roger Staubach.

#41 – Super Bowl XLI: Peyton Manning (Colts) vs. Rex Grossman (Bears)

Peyton finally got to his first Super Bowl, but this match-up is dragged waaaaay down by Sexy Rexy.

In Rex's defense, the weather was awful and Peyton Manning didn't play particularly well either.

#42 – Super Bowl XXXVIII: Tom Brady (Patriots) vs. Jake Delhomme (Panthers)

Brady was going for two out of three, but he was facing the Panthers, who made it on the strength of their running game.

#43- Super Bowl  XVII: Joe Theismann (Redskins) vs. David Woodley (Dolphins)

Theismann wasn’t great, and Woodley wasn’t anybody.

#44 – Super Bowl XXXVII: Brad Johnson (Buccaneers) vs. Rich Gannon (Raiders)

Gannon was the MVP, but the Bucs were all about defense.

#45 – Super Bowl XXXV: Trent Dilfer (Ravens) vs. Kerry Collins (Giants)

Most people’s worst match-up, but only second-worst for me.

#46 – Super Bowl XX:  Jim McMahon (Bears) vs. Tony Eason (Patriots)

Eason had more interceptions than touchdowns in the regular season, while the Bears had Payton, Singletary and the Fridge, and McMahon was largely an afterthought outside his persona and sunglasses.

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So there are the rankings. 1-46. Every Super Bowl quarterback matchup ever.

The question now, as it was when we ranked the 13 best Super Bowl plays of all-time, and when we ranked the 10 best Super Bowl commercials of all-time, is what choices do you agree/disagree with? What did we get right, and what did we get wrong?

That’s what the comment section is for. Chime in below!

Things didn’t get much better for the Pats after the AFL-NFL Merger.

In their first 14 seasons in the NFL the Patriots never won a Playoff game. The team’s first Super Bowl appearance was a 46-10 mauling by the storied 1985 Chicago Bears.

In recent years the Patriots fortunes have changed and they have become one of the most successful and consistent teams in football.

• Super Bowl appearances: 7—1985-86 (XX), 1996-97 (XXXI), 2001-02 (XXXVI), 2003-04 (XXXVIII), 2004-05 (XXXIX), 2007-08 (XLII), 2011-12 (XLVI)
• All-time Super Bowl record: 3-3 (pending the result of XLVI)
• AFL Championships before the Super Bowl era: none (played in the 1963 AFL Championship Game)

Tom Brady after Super Bowl XXXVI

New England Patriots Super Bowl Results, Locations, and MVPs

Super Bowl XX, New England Patriots vs. Chicago Bears

• Date: January 26, 1986
• Location: Louisiana Superdome, New Orleans, Louisiana
• Score: Bears 46, Patriots 10
• MVP: Richard Dent, Bears DE

Super Bowl XXXI, New England Patriots vs. Green Bay Packers

• Date: January 26, 1997
• Location: Louisiana Superdome, New Orleans, Louisiana
• Score: Packers 35, Patriots 21
• MVP: Desmond Howard, Packers KR

Super Bowl XXXVI, New England Patriots vs. St. Louis Rams

• Date: February 3, 2002
• Location: Louisiana Superdome, New Orleans, Louisiana
• Score: Patriots 20, Rams 17
• MVP: Tom Brady, Patriots QB

Super Bowl XXXVIII, New England Patriots vs. Carolina Panthers

• Date: February 1, 2004
• Location: Reliant Stadium, Houston, Texas
• Score: Patriots 32, Panthers 29
• MVP: Tom Brady, Patriots QB

Super Bowl XXXIX, New England Patriots vs. Philadelphia Eagles

• Date: February 6, 2005
• Location: Alltel Stadium, Jacksonville, Florida
• Score: Patriots 24, Eagles 21
• MVP: Deion Branch, Patriots WR

Super Bowl XLII, New England Patriots vs. New York Giants

• Date: February 3, 2008
• Location: University of Phoenix Stadium, Glendale, Arizona
• Score: Giants 17, Patriots 14
• MVP: Eli Manning, Giants QB

(This game, of course, famously featured one of the 13 best plays in Super Bowl history.)

Super Bowl XLVI, New England Patriots vs. New York Giants

• Date: February 5, 2012
• Location: Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis, IN
• Score: Patriots ??, Giants ??
• MVP: ???

Click to view the New York Giants Super Bowl History.

**********

That was a time before my children had single-handedly decimated my social life.  I was out at a bar with several buddies, when one of my cronies boasted “I am going to make over $500,000 this year. That puts me in the top 2/10 of 1% of earners in the United States. That makes me truly elite.”

I came to two conclusions that night. First, this guy is a tool.  And second, I now define “truly elite” as the top 2/10 of 1%.

With that in mind…

The Best, “Truly Elite” Plays in Super Bowl History

I am guessing – and please, if your Google skills are better than mine, tell me the exact number in the comments section below – that the Super Bowls, all 45 of them (I feel like I should say “all XLV of them”), have had about 5,500 total plays.

So, to be considered a “truly elite” play, you are talking about the top 2/10 of 1% of all plays ever run in a Super Bowl. The cream of the crop, the top of the heap, the best 13 plays in the history of the Super Bowl.  (Note: best does not always mean good, in fact it could be the opposite, at least in the world through my goggles.)

You may disagree with some of these, so let the banter begin. I think these are the 11 best Super Bowl plays ever, the ones that changed history…

#13. Lynn Swann’s Catch in Super Bowl X

Lynn Swann’s 53-yard catch from Terry Bradshaw.

This play probably shouldn’t be on this list because it had no ultimate effect on the game and was not even part of a drive that resulted in points.  But, man, that was one of the prettiest catches you will ever see.

First catch in the video below, with bonus John Facenda on audio:

#12. Unitas (to Hinton) to Mackey in Super Bowl V

Johnny Unitas’ 75-yard TD pass to John Mackey.

The Cowboys had a 6-0 lead and all the momentum in this one when Unitas’ passed deflected off his intended receiver Eddien Hinton and ended up in the arms of his stud TE, who rumbled 75 yards for the score.

Interestingly, the PAT was blocked, meaning that Jim O’Brien, the Colt kicker, had to redeem himself with a game winning field goal in the final seconds.

#11. Scott Norwood in Super Bowl XXV

Scott Norwood misses a 47-yard game winning field goal.

Yes, I put this play on the list over either of the Adam Vinitieri game winning field goals.  Why?  Because those kicks were the difference between winning and overtime.  This was the difference between winning and losing.

One play. All the marbles. All on Scott Norwood’s right foot. Wide right (a saying that Bobby Bowden then went on to immortalize).

I still feel bad for him.

#10 (3-way Tie). Garo Yepremian, Jackie Smith, Leon Lett

All of these just had to be included. Classic. Priceless.

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#7. Marcus Allen in Super Bowl XVIII

74-yard touchdown run by Marcus Allen in which he starts left and then cuts back and runs by the entire defense. 

This is simply one of the prettiest runs you will ever see.

I would have been raked higher on this list except the fact that the Raiders won 38-9, and the score was already 28-9 when this happened in the 3^rd quarter.

#6. 49ers’ Goalline Stand in Super Bowl XVI

It is almost unfair to include this as a single play, because, really, the entire 4-play, goal-to-go stand was remarkable.  But the 3^rd down swing pass to Charles Alexander, who was stopped a foot short of the goal line by Dan Bunz out in the flat in isolation, is one of the most memorable and important plays in Super Bowl history.

This video chronicles the entire four-down sequence, with John Facenda as a bonus narrator:

#5. David Tyree’s Catch in Super Bowl XLII

Eli Manning’s 32-yard pass to David Tyree. Facing 3^rd and 5 from their own 43 with time running down on the Giants’ Super Bowl hopes, Manning escapes a near certain sack, then throws the ball up to David Tyree (who had 4 catches all season long, AND NONE EVER AGAIN IN HIS CAREER), who somehow secured the ball against his helmet.

Of course, The G-Men went on to win on a Plaxico Burress (pre-gunshot wound) TD, but this is the play everyone remembers:

#4. Kevin Dyson Stopped At The One in Super Bowl XXXIV

What a magical season.

St. Louis came out of nowhere to shock the world in still must be regarded as the most surprising rise from ashes in NFL history.

When they played the Titans for the championship of the world, many people point to Kurt Warner’s 73-yard TD pass to Isaac Bruce in the game’s last two minutes as the highlight of the game, but the “elite” play came from less heralded LB Mike Jones, who stopped Kevin Dyson from scoring on a slant pass as time expired, stopping him one yard short of the end zone and overtime.

Never before, and perhaps never again, has a Super Bowl ended so close to the end zone:

#3. James Harrison’s Pick-6 in Super Bowl XLIII

As with #4, many people would have the game winning TD as the play they point to when remembering Pittsburgh defeating Arizona just three years ago.  And Roethlisberger’s pass to Santonio Holmes (and the entire two-minute drive) were tremendous, but none of it may have been possible without the game changing effort of James Harrison on the last play of the 1^st half.

Sitting on the Pittsburgh 2-yard line with a 1^st and goal with 18-seconds left in the first half, Arizona was poised to take a 14-10 halftime lead when Kurt Warner was picked off by James Harrison. It took him a while to get there, but Harrison made it past the entire Cardinals team to just get over the goal line for a 14-point swing

#2. Montana to Taylor in Super Bowl XXIII

The greatest #2 receiver in the history of NFL football, John Taylor, finally got his due, scoring the game-winning touchdown with only :34 seconds to play.

Joe Montana marched the team 92 yards on the game winning drive, after famously walking into the huddle, pointed at the crowd, and asking “Hey, isn’t that John Candy?”). Of course, Rice was still named the game’s MVP, but this is the play everyone remembers.

#1. John Riggins in Super Bowl XVII

With the Redskins facing 4^th & 1 in the 4^th quarter, trailing the Dolphins 17-13, Joe Gibbs went for it and handed the ball to his horse, John Riggins, who broke a tackle at the line and rumbled 43 yards for the go-ahead (and ultimately winning) score.

Nothing fancy. Just your typical dive play that decides the Super Bowl.

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So, what do you think? What did I miss? What did I get right?

Let the debates begin….

Follow Brian Dilsheimer on Twitter @Dils_Ignite

The 7-3 Lions are relevant on the fourth Thursday of November.

When families across the country tomorrow turn their televisions to Fox at 11:30 a.m. (Central Time), they’ll get to enjoy a Thanksgiving meal while watching a Lions team that is very much in the playoff picture (complete schedule here). Many of my MSF colleagues aren’t old enough to remember the last time that happened.

For the first time in years family members won’t be asking each other, “Why are we stuck with the Lions on Thanksgiving?” as they pass the mashed potatoes.

Detroit’s First Thanksgiving Day Game

The Lions and the Bears on Thanksgiving, 1934. An extra serving of sweet potatoes goes to the person who can figure out what sort of offense they're running. (Pro Football Hall of Fame)

The Lions have played on Thanksgiving for as long as they’ve been the Lions.

The franchise began as the Portsmouth (OH) Spartans in 1930. In 1934, team owner G.A. Richards moved the team from the small steel town on the Ohio River to Detroit. Desperate to bring attention to the new team and its star quarterback Dutch Clark, Richards scheduled a Thanksgiving Day game against the reigning champion Chicago Bears. The Lions were 10–1 going into that game; the Bears were 11-0. All 26,000 tickets for the game, held at University of Detroit Stadium, were sold out weeks before Thanksgiving.

The game, which the Bears won 19-16 en route to an NFL Western Division title, was such a success that Thanksgiving Day football in Detroit became an annual affair. The Lions have hosted a Thanksgiving game every year since World War II.

But football on Thanksgiving predates the Lions, and even the NFL.

We don’t know when two football teams first decided to face off on Thanksgiving, or why, but by the end of the 19th century, the tradition was already established.

The Beginning of Thanksgiving Day Football

College

The Universities of Michigan and Chicago met annually on Thanksgiving beginning in 1893. (Even before then Michigan had played Thanksgiving games against the Chicago Athletic Association.) The Michigan-Chicago tradition ended in 1899 after Chicago coach Amos Alonzo Stagg refused to split gate receipts equally with the Wolverines or to give Michigan the right to choose the location of the 1900 game.

Stagg did not consider Michigan or other regional schools Chicago’s equals. The Wolverines needed to play in Chicago; Stagg’s Maroons would do just fine never setting foot in Ann Arbor. So in 1899 the Wisconsin Badgers traveled to the Windy City for a Thanksgiving meeting with the Chicago Maroons. (Say what you want about Amos Alonzo Stagg. His name is still on the Big Ten championship trophy.)

Fans tailgate before the 1895 Michigan-Chicago game. (Chicago Tribune)

High School

High schools also have been playing Thanksgiving Day games since the 19th century.

In many states old rivals play each other on Thanksgiving, provided that one or both of the two schools haven’t advanced to the late rounds of the state tournament. Boston Latin and Boston English, two of the nation’s oldest secondary schools, have played on Thanksgiving every year since 1887.

The most storied Thanksgiving Day rivalry in the Midwest involves two schools just outside of St. Louis. Kirkwood and Webster Groves have played on Thanksgiving since the late 1890s. This year, with Kirkwood advancing to the Missouri Class 5 State Championship Game, the annual Turkey Day contest between Kirkwood and Webster Groves will involve the junior varsity squads.

Professional

Pro football teams have played on Thanksgiving since the first professional leagues arose in the first decade of the 20th century.

The New York Pro Football League, a predecessor of the modern-day NFL, settled its championship on Thanksgiving. The Ohio League, the NFL’s other ancestor, saved its most important games for the holiday. The first NFL season in 1920 featured 6 Thanksgiving Day games, 5 of which were shut-outs (including one scoreless tie) and 2 of which involved NFL teams playing non-league teams.

Throughout the 1920s and 1930s the number of Thanksgiving games and the teams involved varied from season to season.

In the first Thanksgiving football games, Turkeys played for their lives.

Thanksgiving Day Dispute

In 1939 a dispute arose about the actual date of Thanksgiving.

Prior to that year, the holiday had always been the final Thursday of November. In 1939 that would have put Thanksgiving on November 30. Back then shoppers and retailers were loath to buy or sell Christmas gifts before Thanksgiving. So a late Turkey Date meant a short Christmas shopping season.

President Franklin Roosevelt was afraid that a November 30 Thanksgiving would have a negative impact on an economy that was still struggling to recover from the Great Depression. Under pressure from business leaders, FDR moved the holiday back one week, to November 23. Several states refused to recognize the change. After all, the Thanksgiving high school football games were already scheduled.

That year there were two Thanksgivings.

The only NFL game played on either date was a November 23 clash between the Philadelphia Eagles and the Pittsburgh Steelers.

In 1941 Congress passed a law establishing Thanksgiving as the fourth Thursday in November.

"You can wait another week if you want. But there won't be any turkey left."—Franklin Delano Roosevelt

The Growth of the NFL’s Thanksgiving Day Classic

For two decades after World War II (with the exception of a 1952 game between the Bears and the Dallas Texans), the NFL played only one game on Thanksgiving, hosted by the Detroit Lions.

In 1946 the upstart All-American Football Conference (AAFC) also played a Thanksgiving Day game. (The New York Yankees beat the Brooklyn Dodgers 21-7.) The following year the AAFC played two games on the holiday, a trend that the league continued until it folded after the 1949 season (at which point three AAFC teams—the San Francisco 49ers, Cleveland Browns, and Baltimore Colts—joined the NFL).

When the American Football League (AFL) launched in 1960 it also had an annual Thanksgiving Day game on its schedule. The first 3 AFL Thanksgiving games involved the New York Titans, who would later become the Jets.

In 1966 Dallas Cowboys owner Tex Schramm jumped at the opportunity to host a second Thanksgiving NFL game. He saw it as a marketing opportunity—a chance to bring publicity to his young franchise.

Not to be outdone, the AFL added a second Thanksgiving game in 1967. For the next 3 seasons, American football fans were treated to 4 pro football games on the fourth Thursday of November. When the AFL merged with the NFL in 1970, it gave up its two Thanksgiving games. Instead, one team from the new American Football Conference would play either the Lions or Cowboys.

With the exceptions of 1975 and 1977, when the St. Louis Cardinals replaced the Cowboys as a Turkey Day host, the NFL played exactly two Thanksgiving games—one in Detroit, one in Dallas—from 1970 until 2005.

In 2006 the league added a third game. So those of you who get the NFL Network can enjoy Thanksgiving football long after the dishes have been done and the remains of your holiday meal are sitting in a dozen Tupperware® containers in the fridge.

"I didn't catch what he said. Let's just assume that he said 'heads.' "

Though Thanksgiving football is as American as a deep-fried Twinkie at the state fair, the tradition isn’t confined to the states.

The Canadian Football League (CFL) has held a Thanksgiving Day doubleheader each year since 1970. But don’t be shocked when you don’t see Argos-Als highlights tomorrow night on SportsCenter. The CFL plays its Thanksgiving Day Classic on Canadian Thanksgiving, which is the second Monday in October.

Football on Thanksgiving is as old as the sport itself. And it’s nice that, this year, we can kick off the day with a game that has playoff implications (even if we have to deal with Nickelback at halftime).

Happy Thanksgiving.

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Josh Tinley is the author of Kneeling in the End Zone: Spiritual Lessons From the World of Sports. Follow him at twitter.com/joshtinley or send him an e-mail.

The Larry O'brien Trophy

Since people are always wondering who has the most NBA Championships or trying to remember which years Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls were the NBA Champions, we promise to keep this post up to date. So check out our table below to see which team has the most NBA Titles, and you can even see which team has the most NBA Finals losses.

The table is ordered by total number of NBA titles by franchise. I have tried to organize the data from NBA.Com in to an easy to read format, accounting for teams that have moved cities or changed names, with notes when possible. I also included a list of which years each team won. For example, the 2009-2010 Los Angeles Lakers Championship is listed as 2010. The table goes back to the foundation of the BAA, which was the precursor to the NBA, and is included in the data from NBA.com.

*Oklahoma City Thunder also known as Seattle SuperSonics

*Los Angeles Lakers also known as Minneapolis Lakers

*Detroit Pistons also known as Fort Wayne Pistons

*Golden State Warriors also known as San Francisco & Philadelphia Warriors

*Sacramento Kings also known as Rochester Royals

*Washington Wizards also known as Washington & Baltimore Bullets, but are not the same Baltimore Bullets Franchise that won the BAA in 1948. You can read a full history of the Washington Wizards Franchise here

The goal of the post then was simple and it hasn’t changed: track every team’s Super Bowl record and provide an easy table to see which team has the most Super Bowl wins.

As you can see below, this post has now been viewed over 150,000 times, and during the playoffs it attracts thousands of visitors a day. And for entertainment, you can head on down to the comment section and read some pretty lively debating between Steelers and Cowboys fans. (Update: And let’s not leave out the 49ers fans. They’ve become pretty vocal down there too.)

Obviously I plan to keep this post updated as long as Midwest Sports Fans is up and running. As long as people are Googling to find out which team has the most Super Bowl wins and what each team’s Super Bowl record is, we’ll keep providing the answers.

Below is a table that lists the teams in order of most Super Bowl wins and then goes in reverse order of the losingest teams in Super Bowl history (basically so we can all point and laugh at Vikings and Bills fans).

Additionally, you can see the all-time team Super Bowl records for each organization that has participated in at least one.

Here are some additional posts about Super Bowl history you will find interesting:

• The ‘Super Bowl’ – Why Is It Called That? And Why Roman Numerals? – by Josh Tinley
• The 11 Greatest Super Bowls of All-Time…That Never Actually Happened – by Drew Lange
• The 10 Best (and 3 Worst) Super Bowl Commercials of All-Time – by The Sports Muse

History shows that 0-2 teams advance to the playoffs more often than people might think.  Since the current playoff format was instituted in 1990, 22 teams started 0-2 and still qualified for the postseason.

The 1993 Dallas Cowboys started 0-2 before winning Super Bowl XXVIII.

The 0-2 New England Patriots of 1996 played in Super Bowl XXXI, and in 2001, the 0-2 Patriots won Super Bowl XXXVI.

Most recently, the 2007 New York Giants started 0-2 before winning Super Bowl XLII.

The 0-2 teams since 1990 to qualify for the playoffs:

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As you know, Jerod is participating in the 2010 P&G-sponsored Blogger Fantasy Football League, which is part of the Take It To The House program. In addition to competing for a trip to the Super Bowl, one of the perks Jerod received for participating was getting to spend a day at the NFL headquarters in New York. And that led to getting on the NFL’s media email list.

The NFL circulates interesting statistical and injury-related tidbits on a daily basis. Since we know that your appetite for NFL info is as insatiable as ours, we post them here for your enjoyment.

To get this info ever quicker, follow http://twitter.com/nflfootballinfo.

The New York Islanders in the 1980s are widely attributed with being the pioneers of the playoff beard. Islander skaters such as Ken Morrow, Butch Goring, John Tonelli, Clark Gillies, and Gord Lane all grew out black beards.

They hoped it would bring luck, which it did. The Islanders of the ’80s won four consecutive Stanley Cups form 1980-84.

There is only one rule to the playoff beard.

1. Players or fans can’t shave until team is eliminated form playoffs or after the final game of the Championship.

Ken Morrow and his playoff beard

However, there is an exception to the rule. A player can shave the beard if things aren’t going their way in hope to change the teams’ luck.

Since the Islanders first grew playoff beards, growing one has become a staple in nearly every North American hockey league from the NHL, high school teams, NCAA hockey teams, and even minor league affiliates.

The fan base of the playoff team is also encouraged to grow out their beards.

Woman or significant others seem to dislike the playoff beard, however. Jean-Sebastien Giguere’s wife was noted to have hated the beard.

I am currently growing one for my Chicago Blackhawks, and there hasn’t been a day that goes but were I haven’t heard it from my mom, telling me to “shave the damn thing.”

Despite some female hatred for the beard, it still lives on, not only in the hockey world, but now into other sports as well. Most notably, you see playoff beards in the NBA and NFL.

In the ’90s, members of the New York Knicks including Patrick Ewing, Charles Oakley, and Allan Houston grew out playoff beards during their run in the playoffs. Lebron James of the Cavaliers has also sported a playoff beard, bringing the beard into the modern age of basketball.

A teammate of James, Zydrunas IIgauskas, grew one in 2006, but didn’t bring back the beard in the 2007 playoffs because of spousal disapproval.

Even professional athletes are at the mercy of their wife.

A popular example of a playoff beard in the NFL was Ben Roethlisberger, during the 2006 NFL playoffs. After the Steelers had won the Super Bowl, Roethlisberger had his beard shaved during his appearance on the Late Show With David Letterman.

Out of all playoff beards I have seen, I have to give my award to best beard to Mike Commodore in 2006. The beard itself is epic, but throw in the red afro and it’s a match made in heaven.

Love it or hate it, the playoff beard is becoming more and more popular every year, making professional athletes look like bums and hobos every year.

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* – Ken Morrow playoff beard photo credit: Pro Sports Memorabilia

* – Zydrunas Ilgauskas photo credit: Bleacher Report

* – Mike Commodore photo credit: The Sports Dish

For instance, you all know that Michael Jordan led the Chicago Bulls to six NBA championships and and two Three-Peats, but did you remember or realize that the Houston Rockets were the team that owned the two seasons in between? And that Hakeem the Dream is a two-time Finals MVP?

Check out the all-time list of NBA champions, Finals participants, and NBA Finals MVPs below. It’ll teach you some things you need to know.

And then there are the old-timers, the ones who watched Russell and Wilt, watched Dr. J throw it down, and watched Magic and Larry go head-to-head as if it were Super Bowl Sunday. Well for you people, this is a useful list of what has happened before, during, and after these guys were lacing ‘em up.

Take a quick look at these links if you’re planning on going to any NBA games (so that you can get the best deals on tickets) then enjoy a quick run through NBA Finals history.

• StubHub: Regular Season NBA Tickets
• StubHub: NBA Playoffs Tickets
• RazorGator: Regular Season NBA Tickets
• RazorGator: NBA Playoffs Tickets

Below folks, I present to you a list of the very, very few basketball players and teams who have lived the one dream that most ball players wish to fulfill. These are the all-time great teams and players, the ones who have captured all of the glory or fallen just one series short.

Here is the all-time list of NBA champions, Finals participants, and NBA Finals MVPs.

All-Time List of NBA Champions, Finals Participants, and Results

Source: NBA.com

Update 3/4/10: This post originally written before the 2009 Women’s Tournament but, as part of our preparation for March Madness 2010, I am updating the links and table to reflect current information as this post still gets lots of visitors each day, which I’m sure will continue as we approach the 2010 tournament.

I have spent the better part of the last two weeks trying to research and dispense as much information as possible about this year’s NCAA Tournament and conference tournaments, as well as the history of the NCAA Tournament, both on the men’s and women’s side.

Yesterday, I posted about the history of the men’s and women’s NCAA Tournament MOP award, and a few days ago we looked at the history of every Final Four on the men’s side. (Links below for these posts.)

Today, we jump back over to women’s college basketball to take a brief glance at the history of their tournament.

Before we delve into the table and then discuss, here is your menu of links for our March Madness History series:

• 2010 NCAA Mens Tournament Dates and Site Breakdown
• 2010 NCAA Womens Tournament Dates and Site Breakdown
• NCAA Mens Basketball Tournament History: Past Champions, Final Four participants, Final Four locations by year, and interesting tournament tidbits
• NCAA Champions – Mens Basketball: All-time list of mens basketball NCAA Tournament champions, ordered from most won to least.
• NCAA Men’s and Women’s Basketball Tournament MOPs: All-Time List

• StubHub: 2010 NCAA Mens Basketball Tournament Tickets – All sites and dates
• StubHub: 2010 NCAA Womens Basketball Tournament Tickets – all dates and sites

Now, let’s take a look at the history of the Women’s NCAA Basketball Tournament, which began in 1982 and has seemed to grow in popularity with each year.

As you look at this list, one thing will become clear: Tennessee and UConn have dominated the women’s side of college basketball like no team on the men’s side since UCLA. Neither one has come close to UCLA’s standard of consistent domination and excellence in the 60s and 70s, but Tennessee and UConn are the undisputed #1 and #2 heavyweights of women’s college basketball.

And just so you don’t have to do it for yourself, here is a quick breakdown of women’s basketball championships by team from most to least:

• Tennessee – 8
• UConn -6
• Louisiana Tech, USC, Stanford – 2
• Old Dominion, Baylor, Maryland, Notre Dame, Texas, Texas Tech, North Carolina, Purdue – 1

Tennessee and UConn have combined for 14 NCAA women’s basketball championships since 1987. That is ridiculous. By comparison, the top combined total for any two men’s programs since 1987 is five. Duke has won three NCAA titles since 1987, while UConn, North Carolina, Kansas, and Kentucky have all won two.

For even more evidence of Tennessee’s dominance, consider the number of Final Fours they have reached: 18. That means that Tennessee has reached the Women’s Final Four 69% of the time. That is just a preposterous number, and proves the greatness of Pat Summit. Louisiana Tech has made 10 Final Fours, UConn has made 9, and Stanford has made 7.

According to the source for this article, the NCAA Women’s Basketball page on Wikipedia, a major breakthrough for the NCAA Women’s Basketball Championship game occurred in 2003 when the championship game was moved to the Tuesday after the men’s title game. This makes the NCAA Women’s Basketball Championship the last game of the college basketball season.

The growth of teams in the NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament has grown as follows:

• 1982-1985: 32 teams
• 1986-1988: 40 teams
• 1989-1993: 48 teams
• 1994-present: 64 teams

The women’s tournament has also gone through a variety of different seeding processes, most based on regional seeding to keep all teams as close to their home base as possible. Since 1996 though, the seeding process has become very similar to the men’s tournament.

I will be the first to admit that I do not follow women’s college basketball during the regular season. Between the end of football season, my passion for IU and Big Ten men’s basketball, and the beginning of Spring Training, there just is not enough time to follow women’s basketball too. But I do fill out brackets and watch the Women’s Basketball Tournament. And two rules of thumb that I will continue to follow this year: pick Tennessee or UConn to win, and pick Tennessee to make the Final Four.

By doing so, you definitely put the odds in your favor.

Update: Get ready for this year’s NCAA mens Tournament with our March Madness 2010 preview post.

By 1973, Blass had an ERA of 9.81 while walking 84 batters in 88 innings.

By 1975, Blass was essentially incapable of throwing the ball over the plate and was out of baseball.

Since 1975, every Major League Baseball player who has inexplicably lost the ability to accurately throw a baseball has been dubiously compared to Blass and described as having contracted “Steve Blass Disease”. Mark Wohlers, Chuck Knobluach, and Rick Ankiel are a few who come to mind.

Now, nearly 35 years later, the man who lost the ability to throw a ball that is 2 7/8″ in diameter a distance of 60 feet and 6 inches into an area that is roughly the size of a human torso has apparently found the ability to do something much more difficult (and do it twice!): use a club to hit a ball that is 1.68 inches in diameter over a distance of between 150-175 yards into a cup that measures 4 1/4″ wide.

That’s right ladies gentleman. Steve Blass, the man synonymous with baseball inaccuracy, has recorded two feats of athletic achievement that require complete and almost unfathomable accuracy: the hole in one.

And, as mentioned, the 67-year old Blass did it twice.

The Biggest Games. The Best Tickets. StubHub.com

The irony of this story is so delicious that it feels as if I’m typing from a table at Fogo de Chao. But even more than the irony, this is a just a terrific story of delayed redemption that only the sports world can provide.

According to Golf.com’s account of Steve Blass getting two holes-in-one during one 18-hole round:

Blass’s first hole-in-one Thursday at Greensburg County Club came with an 8-iron at the 154-yard, par-3 15th hole – because of the format, his fivesome started on the back nine.

His second ace came with a 7-iron on the 175-yard, par-3 seventh hole.

Golf Digest estimates the odds against a golfer having two holes-in-one in the same round at 67 million to 1.

The two holes-in-one by Steve Blass came at the Pittsburgh Pirates’ annual team golf outing today.

Congratulations to Steve Blass on his incredible feat. Perhaps now he can be remembered for both his famous and infamous athletic achievements.

And I guess if Tiger Woods or Phil Mickelson or any other golfer ever holes out two aces in one round, we can give a new, positive meaning to saying they have “Steve Blass Disease”.

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* – Steve Blass photo credit: SI via Podium Sports Journal

On a side note, that is why I was a huge opponent of the Miami Hurricanes leaving the Orange Bowl and moving 20 miles north of their campus to Landshark Stadium. It is also home to the lackluster fan bases of the Dolphins and Marlins.

But let’s talk Big Ten since this is by and for Midwest sports fans.

I was excited to see Indiana’s newly renovated stadium on the Big Ten network and I am equally excited to see Minnesota leave the horrible Metrodome. Maybe their awesome new outdoor field will give them a home field advantage and some college atmosphere that they have been lacking. At least, they have since I have been alive.

That said, having a unique and imposing home field gives football teams the advantages they need to compete in the Big Ten, hosting visiting fans to a good experience, and sometimes an edge in recruiting.

(And, by the way, if you’re interested in attending any Big Ten games this year and don’t yet have tickets, click here to get great deals on Big Ten tickets from StubHub, or click on the name of each stadium to find tickets by team.)

1. Ohio Stadium (Ohio State) – 102,329 capacity

Nicknamed “The Horse Shoe,” but not a horse shoe anymore since the 2001 renovation. The top spot is really a toss-up between Penn State and Ohio State. Penn State just joined the Big Ten in 1993 though, so the tie-breaker goes to the Buckeyes (and include in that tie-breaker my years growing up in Columbus).Â

Ohio State has a raucous crowd that usually makes it deafening for the opposing squads.  Plus “The Best Damn Band In All The Land” marches across Woody Hayes Drive and onto the field before every game to form the famous Script Ohio, as seen below.

Fans run with the marching band and into the stadium as if they were scrambling to see an approach shot by Tiger Woods after a drive on the 18th hole. Other teams’ fans are annoyed at the obnoxious Buckeye fans as much as the British golf commentator is at the “GET IN THE HOLE!” guy at Augusta.

I just got goose bumps thinking of the craziness that occurs once the senior tuba player high steps his way to dot the “I” and the band belts out the oft played fight song. Everybody sings the words and yells O-H-I-O, each side owning one of the letters in order.

The Olentangy River runs right next to the stadium and serves as a great sight when walking through the miles of tailgates on fall Saturdays. The capacity expands to 105,000+ during big games, especially the Michigan game. You will have a hard time finding a sizeable road crowd during Big Ten games as the home fans just won’t give up their tickets so road fans can watch their team lose.

There is a reason there is a recruiting “fence” around the Ohio border and that reason is the memories conjured, the tradition, the size, and the atmosphere inside and out of Thee Ohio Stadium. I wanna go back to Ohio State, to old Columbus Town!

[Editor's Note: And those of us who don't bleed scarlet and gray like you are now ready to vomit.]

2. Beaver Stadium (Penn State) – 107,292 capacity

The capacity is 107,282 and they have stuffed 110,000+ during big match-ups. Kirk Herbstreit deemed Happy Valley with the best student section in college football with the senior student section forming a block “S” in blue and white shirts or body paint.

I absolutely agree with Kirk. And so do my dead brain cells after partying with some of the craziest party people I ever met when I lived on South Beach. “They Were! Penn State!” (graduates).

The “White Outs” and the noise make this the hardest place for a road team to get any sort of rhythm in the Big Ten. If the crowd wasn’t loud enough, they have a huge Jumbotron and booming sound system that plays a cat-like roar, making the crowd’s roar just as intimidating.

Unlike Ohio Stadium, it is nice to see they have the crew smart enough to keep lush natural grass every year. This Saturday afternoon football church in Happy Valley reeks of Preparation H for old alumni, liquored up party people with flasks, and sexy college co-eds. In a good way.

3. Camp Randall Stadium (Wisconsin) – 80,321 capacity

Though not as large as Beaver Stadium, Wisconsin’s student section rivals that of Penn State. To reference dead brain cells again, some of the craziest party people I know in Indianapolis and Chicago are Wisconsin graduates.

The UW band sets off the crowd playing drinking songs, pop songs, and dance songs. And, of course, the sound man gets everyone jumping before the fourth quarter during “Jump Around” by House of Pain, a tradition that started against Purdue in 1998. The video below takes place during an Indiana game…which I am sure Wisconsin won.  By a lot.

Video: Fans Jump Around at Camp Randall Stadium

Come to think of it, that would be a great nickname and slogan for the stadium: “Welcome to the House of Pain.”

The marching band was also suspended in 2006 and 2008 because of some off-the-field antics including hazing and sexual misconduct on road trips (sounds like a good time to me).

[Editor's Note: Midwest Sports Fans does not explicitly endorse KVB's idea of a good time.]

Established in 1917, Camp Randall is the oldest stadium in the Big Ten and the atmosphere (literally) is host to horrible weather conditions that stifles many road teams. The visiting locker room has been painted pale pink in the past and now a pale blue supposedly to distract the road teams.Wisconsin is currently 30-3 at home since painting it the distracting “prison blue” color.

If you travel there for a night game, expect the bad weather and bad play by your team. Even the Green Bay Packers play one preseason game a year at Camp Randall Stadium. In turn the Wisconsin marching band attends at least one Packers game at Lambeau Field a year.

4. Michigan Stadium aka “The Big House” (Michigan) – 106,201 capacity

They are adding more seats to reach 108,000 plus by 2010. Insert “The Big House” and the fans that sit on their hands in silence here.

M. (for Michigan) Night Shymalan, Super Wolverine, and the Wrist Band Warrior

Â

One of two things is happening here. A) Michigan just lost to Appalachian State; or B) The guy in the bottom right hand corner of the picture just farted. Or perhaps both? (photo credit: LON HORWEDEL, THE ANN ARBOR NEWS)

Â

And by the way, if you don’t remember what inspired the despondent looks on the faces of the Michigan turds fans above, watch the first few minutes of the video below:

Video: Appalachian State Upsets Michigan

Interesting to me is that Ann Arbor only has an 114,000 person population so you know the town basically shuts down until football is over. That is how college football Saturdays should be.

You have no idea the size of the stadium on the outside since it is built with the stands and the field going down and underground from where you walk up to the ticket gates. One thing I will say about Michigan fans (like Buckeye fans) is that a road fan will be hard pressed to find extra tickets because the fan base is so loyal. Even if they are not that loud or intimidating, or that idiotic or drunk.

Michigan Stadium has hosted Wolverine football since 1927 and the famous Fielding Yost. As an Ohio State fan, I find it funny that they played on “Ferry Field” before Michigan Stadium. I couldn’t make that up. Never.

5. Kinnick Stadium (Iowa) – 70,585

Another stadium holding a pink-painted visitors locker room, but this wasn’t done by mistake like perhaps the drunk and stoned Wisconsin students in Madison. Former coach Hayden Fry majored in psychology at Baylor University and believed the pink color had a calming effect that could make visitors have less mental toughness and be less aggressive after pissing in a pink urinal.

Some women and those in the gay/lesbian community have protested for it to be changed saying it is a slap in the face to their lifestyle. (This furthers my believability that grassroots campaigns did in fact legalize gay marriage in the state earlier this year.)

Back to the stadium, it is about as boring as the dunkards who live in Iowa. But I will give Iowa’s only Heisman Trophy winner (Nile Kinnick) and Hayden Fry credit for instilling some excitement on Saturdays and creating a real loyal fan base. Iowa, which stands for Idiots Out Walking Around, takes a break from doing that every Saturday and they travel well as I noticed at the 2003 Orange Bowl.

6. Ross-Ade Stadium (Purdue) – 62,500 capacity

And here we have the first major drop off in atmosphere on this list.  I have a hard time giving a lot of Purdue football fans any credit. Unfortunately I’ve probably been to 30 or so games at Ross-Ade, so I can say that.

Every top-10 matchup in Ross-Ade is invaded by the road team’s fans. Most Purdue fans were born and bred on Hoosier basketball, thanks to the movie and Coaches Knight and Keady. Hence, they know nothing about football, how it is played, and of all people the likes of Jim Everett and Joe Tiller taught the fans what winning takes. No, not loyal support, hard work, and consistency; but rather gimmicks and repetitive passing systems that have a hard time lining up when smash mouth, goal line situations are needed.

Tiller first took the Big Ten by storm with the spread and now every time there is a run up the middle the crowd groans and boos. That takes stupidity like calling an offense “Basketball On Grass” as some do. I’ve never seen a more boring ragtime marching band entertainment at halftime than Purdue’s, the “World’s Biggest Drum” and a dance team of fatties dancing the charleston included.

Purdue fans hate it when I say this stuff, but that is because it is true.

A good thing is they did a great renovation enclosing the stadium, have an incredibily large video board, and there is not really a bad seat in the house. So you might as well go see your favorite team in West Lafayette and piss in one of the troughs installed in the restrooms (it’s a Northern Indiana thing, you wouldn’t understand).

Now back to crappiness.

About 15,000 University of Oregon fans took over Ross-Ade last year! The natural Bermuda grass is supposedly a credit to Purdue’s agricultural department finding prescription athletic turf. Good for them. I personally love natural turf. (This paragraph is brought to you by, “Obnoxious Ohio State Fan” mentioned earlier in the article. He’s righteous!)

7. Memorial Stadium (Illinois) – 70,000 capacity

Sorry I’ll be much more positive the rest of the way. Just make sure you send #6 to an IU fan. They need some cheering up come football season.

And speaking of Memorial Stadium, also the name of IU’s stadium, the older of the two is in Champaign and opened in 1924 with Red Grange scoring six touchdowns against Michigan on its official dedication game in October. This Memorial Stadium is a dedication to the men and women who died in the World Wars and has sported artificial turf since 1974.

I love that the original drawing for this stadium was to support more than 80,000 people and have a tall phallic monument in the North end zone.  They eventually settled on the smaller capacity and no monument.

In 2002 the stadium hosted the Chicago Bears while Soldier Field was getting renovated.

Oh, and Ron Zook coaches there now. When he’s not water skiing or bitching at Urban Meyer.

8. Spartan Stadium (Michigan State) – 75,505 capacity

Spartan Stadium fell a lot on my list because I have seen too many big games blown on their own field. Most people blame the coach for this, but I just drop their home field advantage down a notch. Heck, their best win in the 90s was against #1 Ohio State in Ohio Stadium. How do this not hurt Ohio Stadium instead of Spartan Stadium? Simple. The ineptitude since then.

The most exciting things Spartan fans see on TV or at the stadium lately have been an introduction to the basketball team or a sideline reporter interviewing Tom Izzo in the middle of the second quarter while the team was losing. I can hear Mark Dantonio now…”I get no respect, no respect.”

Well, you’re right considering the high school talent that floods your stadium’s gates.

9. TCF Bank Stadium (Minnesota) – 50,300 capacity.

Gopher fans finally have a stadium on their campus and outdoors. This really makes me happy. There probably wasn’t a worse college football atmosphere than the Metrodome. This new stadium, on the other hand, could move up in the rankings once it opens this year.

TCF Bank Stadium includes an apparent easy-to-80,000 person capacity renovation that could take place if the team shows success on the field and makes some extra money in bowl games. It will also include the third largest outdoor HD video board in the nation.

The con here is it is outdoor and cannot bat down opposing team’s punts during games. Though I cannot imagine anyone in the Minnesota administration would have the arrogance of Jerry Jones, refusing to move such a video board if it did get in the way. HD really has us by the nuts doesn’t it?

10. Memorial Stadium (Indiana) - 53,500 capacity.

I love how this Memorial Stadium in Bloomington is dedicated to a rock while Illinois’ is dedicated to war heroes. That’s solid, solid as a rock. Very Charlie Brown in the Halloween episode. I did see the renovations to the stadium on TV and it is finally a Big Ten-worthy stadium. Too bad it wasn’t built for a better program, but I suppose IU does have its moments. While most people complain the top Big Ten teams don’t have a tough conference, IU fans complain their conference schedule is way too tough to compete.

[Editor's Note: As an IU fan and alum, I can categorically say that I've never complained about the conference schedule being too tough. Except when we play Minnesota and Northwestern at home.  Those games are haaarrrrrddd!]

11. Ryan Field (Northwestern) - 49,256 capacity.

I know I said I would get shorter with my writing as the list fell lower on the list. So in lieu of saying anything about Ryan Field, just watch the video below. It makes me happy, and unless you’re a douche it will make you happy too.

 

Really though, Evanston is a great section of Chicago because of this campus.

Well, now you’ve seen my rankings.  What do you think?

Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post's poll.

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* – Ohio Stadium Script Ohio photo credit: Ames Photos

* – Beaver Stadium S-Zone photo credit: Ames Photos

* – Super Wolverine and the Wrist Band Warrior photo credit: DawgSports.com

* – Michigan fans reacting during App State loss photo credit: Lon Horwedel, The Ann Arbor News via MLive.com

* – Kinnick Stadium pink locker room: Sondrak.com

* – Ross-Ade Stadium penis photo credit: Deadspin.com

* – TCF Bank Stadium photo credit: GopherSports.com

There are now six pitchers in Major League history who have thrown a perfect game and a no-hitter: Randy Johnson, Sandy Koufax, Addie Joss, Cy Young, and Jim Bunning.  Four are in the Hall of Fame, and Randy Johnson will be. Mark Buehrle may not ever get the credit I believe he deserves while he is playing, but if he keeps pitching another 5, 6, 7 years he very well could find himself in Cooperstown as well.

And if Buehrle decides not to hang up his cleats early, as he has suggested he will do, Buehrle very well could make a legit run at 300 wins, assuming he stays as healthy as he has always been.

But even as amazing as the group above is that he has joined, it can be narrowed down even further to include only three names: Buehrle, Cy Young, and Koufax.  What do these three pitching greats have in common? They share the most amazing combined 2-game pitching lines in the history of Major League Baseball.

We know that no pitcher has ever thrown two perfect games, but these three have come the closest. Check out the combined stat line from Mark Buehrle’s perfect game and no-no, and then the combined stat lines from Koufax’s best no-hitter and perfect game and Young’s perfect game and best no-hitter:

• Mark Buehrle: 18 innings, 0 hits, 1 BB
• Sandy Koufax: 18 innings, 0 hits, 1BB
• Cy Young: 18 innings, 0 hits, 1 BB

The only difference is that Koufax had 26 combined Ks over his 18 innings, while Buehrle had 14.  I’m not sure about Young, as I couldn’t find the box scores for his no-hitters and perfect games.

Regardless, any time you are in a group of players that includes only you, Sandy Koufax, and Cy Young…you’ve done something pretty special. And it’s about time that baseball fans across the country wake up and realize what White Sox fans have known for a long time: that Mark Buehrle is the most underrated ace in Major League Baseball and truly something special. 

Sox fans didn’t need today’s perfect game to confirm this, as we see Buehrle’s consistent excellence on a year in, year out basis.  Hopefully though, today’s performance helps to bring others around to our enlightened point of view. 

What a career: clutch ace of a consistent playoff contender; World Series champion; no-hitter; perfect game. Perhaps one of these days Mark will also add a Cy Young Award to the mantle.  

Congratulations on a hell of a career to this point Mark, and on authoring one of the 18 greatest single-game pitching stories in the long and storied history of Major League Baseball. “Perfect game” is going to look great on your Cooperstown plaque one of these days.

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* – Mark Buehrle photo credit: Jim Prisching / AP Photo via ABCNews.com