SPORTS EXTRA / FOOTBALL '99: A LAND OF PLENTY : BORN IN L.A. : Super Bowls Were Made for This Town--Even if It Didn't Seem That Way at First

By STEVE SPRINGER

Sept. 2, 1999 12 AM PT

TIMES STAFF WRITER

It was to be the first meeting of two leagues that had banged helmets off the field for seven years, waging clandestine campaigns to steal each other’s draft choices and players while openly displaying mutual hostility.

It was the chance the arrogant National Football League had been waiting for to show its superiority once and for all.

It was the opportunity the feisty American Football League had been waiting for to show it could play with the big boys.

Pete Rozelle, the NFL commissioner, against Al Davis, who was briefly the AFL commissioner.

The basic, but powerful attack of the NFL champion Green Bay Packers, the football equivalent of a conquering army, against the speedy, multiformation look of the AFL champion Kansas City Chiefs, the football equivalent of a guerrilla force.

It was football’s first Super Bowl, so new it didn’t yet have that official name or a Roman numeral. The game had been given to the Los Angeles Coliseum by Rozelle, who had started in pro football with the then-Los Angeles Rams in the days when the team could draw full houses to that historic stadium.

But L.A., as it often does, yawned and largely headed elsewhere on Super Sunday, the ocean, the nearby ski slopes or perhaps a hot swap meet.

Rozelle was chagrined when a stadium that had drawn 102,368 for a Ram-San Francisco 49er regular-season game in 1957 and in excess of 92,000 for three 1959 World Series games was only two-thirds full on Jan. 15, 1967 for Super Bowl I. Only 61,946 came out for the game in a stadium that seated around 93,000 for football. Thirty-three years later, that remains the smallest crowd to attend a Super Bowl. That initial game also remains the only Super Bowl that failed to sell out.

Not surprising. Keep in mind that, in those days, the NFL championship game was second only to the World Series among sporting events in the public’s mind, elevated to that level by the Baltimore Colts’ 1958 sudden-death victory over the New York Giants.

It was felt by most experts that the Green Bay Packers and the Dallas Cowboys were pro football’s two best teams in 1967.

When the Packers held off the Cowboys, 34-27, on New Year’s Day, 1967, NFL fans felt the true champion had been crowned.

The result of the upcoming game against the Chiefs was thought by many to be a foregone conclusion.

Asked before the Super Bowl what it meant to him, Green Bay Coach Vince Lombardi said, “This is the first time it’s been played, so I don’t know. I think a game has to have a little tradition to have great meaning.”

The tickets were scaled from $12 to $6. Today, that kind of money would barely get you a drink at a Super Bowl concession stand. But back then, it was felt those prices were too high.

Nobody can say Rozelle and company didn’t try. They even added a halftime show that included 500 people and 4,000 pigeons.

Still, there were no complaints from the Packers. The day before they left Green Bay, there were 14 inches of snow on the ground. In Los Angeles, they found sunshine and an honored place in NFL history by winning the first Super Bowl, 35-10.

The Coliseum was the home of the Pro Bowl in those days. But any thoughts of also being the permanent host of the Super Bowl had been lost in that vast wasteland of empty seats.

Still, Los Angeles would get other chances at Super Sunday, six more in all. The city was just too big to ignore.

SUPER BOWL VII--1973

By the time the game returned to Los Angeles six years later, it had become too big for even L.A. to ignore. A crowd of 90,182 came to the Coliseum. Former Ram coach George Allen was back as head coach of the Washington Redskins, trying to stop the Miami Dolphins from becoming the only team in NFL history to go 17-0.

Most memorable moment: More than a quarter century later, it is still a staple of football videos. Dolphin kicker Garo Yepremian will always be remembered seeming to try to catch the ball and get rid of it on a botched field-goal attempt. He ultimately batted it into the air and the Redskins’ Mike Bass grabbed it and ran 49 yards for Washington’s only touchdown in a 14-7 Miami victory.

Most unforgettable character: Allen, a workaholic and fanatic for detail, had someone sit in the Coliseum and chart the way the sun set over the rim for several days to get a possible edge on kickoffs and punt returns.

SUPER BOWL XI--1977

The city turned out in record numbers as 103,438 paid their way into the Rose Bowl in Pasadena to watch the Oakland Raiders and the Minnesota Vikings.

Most memorable moment: Putting an exclamation point on the Raiders’ 32-14 victory, their first in a Super Bowl, cornerback Willie Brown picked off a Fran Tarkenton pass near the left sideline and returned it a Super Bowl record 75 yards for a touchdown.

Most unforgettable character: Raider Coach John Madden, who was so excited about getting to the Rose Bowl that he ordered the buses to depart from the hotel early, leaving six players behind.

“As head coach, you can’t go around and say, ‘Hey, I lost six players,’ ” Madden told the New Orleans Times-Picayune. “One of them was John Matuszak and he was like 6-8, 310 pounds. How the hell do you lose him?”

SUPER BOWL XIV--1980

This was the first time a Super Bowl team got to play essentially at home. The Rams, who played in Anaheim, faced the Pittsburgh Steelers in the Rose Bowl and that was enough to break the previous Super Bowl attendance mark by 547 as 103,985 crammed their way in.

Most memorable moment: Trailing, 19-17, at the start of the fourth quarter, the Steelers, in search of a record fourth Super Bowl triumph, took the lead for good when Terry Bradshaw, faced with a third-and-eight, lofted a pass that John Stallworth caught just beyond the reach of cornerback Rod Perry on a 73-yard touchdown play. The Steelers, won, 31-19.

Most unforgettable character: Ram defensive end Jack Youngblood, who limped into Super Bowl lore by playing with a broken leg.

SUPER BOWL XVII--1983

NFL officials knew there was only one spot in the nation where they could get a six-figure crowd--the Rose Bowl. So back they came and 103,667 showed up to watch the Redskins and the Dolphins.

Most memorable moment: With his team behind 17-13 in the fourth quarter, Redskin running back John Riggins faced fourth and one at the Miami 43-yard line. He went left, shook off a defender and raced free down the field into the end zone.

Most unforgettable characters: The Washington offensive line, the driving force in front of Riggins, was known as the Hogs. Big, loud and uncontrollable off the field as well as on it, they spent much of Super Bowl week partying. They would come back to the team’s hotel between 2 and 3 a.m. and rouse any teammates foolish enough to try sleeping.

“We figured if we were still up,” tackle Russ Grimm said, “we’d wake somebody else up.”

Did the Hogs get permission before embarking on their nocturnal journeys?

“You learn one thing around here,” Grimm said. “If nothing’s said, don’t ask.”

SUPER BOWL XXI--1987

With a regular spot in the Super Bowl rotation, Pasadena hosted the game for the fourth time in 11 years, with 101,063 coming out to watch the New York Giants get their first triumph in the big game by defeating the Denver Broncos, 39-20.

Most memorable moment: The Giants gained an emotional edge in the tightly played first half with a flawless defensive stand at their own one-yard line. The Broncos had a 10-7 lead, but with a first down at the New York one in the second quarter, they came away with nothing after a failed field-goal attempt.

Most unforgettable character: Denver wide receiver Vance Johnson, determined to make himself famous, blazed a fashion trail by dressing in a coyote fur coat, white sunglasses, a flat-top and earrings.

“I think it’s real important for me to try to get well known during this Super Bowl week,” Johnson said.

Johnson had five catches for 121 yards and a touchdown.

SUPER BOWL XXVII--1993

Only 98,374 watched in the Rose Bowl as the Dallas Cowboys smashed the Buffalo Bills, 52-17. That was still a higher attendance figure than any reached at any other Super site.

Most memorable moment: With Dallas comfortably ahead in the fourth quarter, Buffalo quarterback Frank Reich fumbled. Defensive lineman Leon Lett picked up the ball and raced toward the end zone 65 yards away. But he began his celebration too early. Hustling Bill receiver Don Beebe caught up to the unsuspecting Lett and knocked the ball loose for a touchback. Beebe became a national hero, Lett a national target of ridicule.

Most unforgettable character: It had to be the mysterious Anthony, described as Magic Johnson’s bodyguard, who got into a fight with Bill linebacker Darryl Talley during Super Bowl week in a West Hollywood nightspot and may or may not have punched Talley in the nose.

It didn’t matter. In the media feeding frenzy of Super Bowl week, Anthony was a prime catch.

SUPER BOWL ?

Will there be another Super Sunday in Los Angeles? The NFL would love it. Warm weather, media center, big crowds, large stadiums--all the ingredients are here.

Everything but a team.

SUPER BOWLS IN L.A.

Super Bowl I (Jan. 15, 1967)--Coliseum

Green Bay 35, Kansas City 10

Attendance: 61,946

Super Bowl VII (Jan. 14, 1973)--Coliseum

Miami 14, Washington 7

Attendance: 90,182

Super Bowl XI (Jan. 9, 1977)--Rose Bowl

Oakland 32, Minnesota 14

Attendance: 103,438

Super Bowl XIV (Jan. 20, 1980)--Rose Bowl