Classic Steelers: The 50 Greatest Games in Pittsburgh Steelers History

by David Finoli

Overview

When it came to football in the 1930s, the college sport was king. But in 1933, former boxer and minor league baseball player Art Rooney, who had quarterbacked the squad at Duquesne University, purchased a team for Pittsburgh for $2,500. Thus began the legacy we know as “Steeler Nation.”

At the time, no one could have imagined that the Pirates, as they were originally named, would become a treasured possession for Pittsburghers. For the first 40 years, the franchise was a national joke. With only one playoff performance—a 21–0 defeat at the hands of the Philadelphia Eagles for the eastern division title in 1947—highlights were minimal for a team that regularly found itself at the bottom of the standings.

Then in 1969, Art Rooney’s son Dan hired Chuck Noll from the Baltimore Colts to coach his team. Noll replaced undisciplined players with future hall of famers. By 1974 the team won its first world championship and went on to capture four Super Bowl titles in six years. Noll’s legacy for excellence continued with four more Super Bowl appearances and two championships in 2005 and 2008, garnering the franchise a league record of six Super Bowl wins.

Classic Steelers includes these six championship tilts and takes citizens of the Steeler Nation on a play-by-play tour of the most memorable games in the team’s history. Author David Finoli recounts in vivid detail the thrilling gridiron performances that have made the Steelers so special to their legions of fans.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781612778464
Publisher:	Kent State University Press
Publication date:	04/15/2014
Series:	Classic Sports
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	248
File size:	3 MB

About the Author

David Finoli is a historian and author from Greensburg, Pennsylvania, who has written 13 books, dealing mostly with the history of sports in Western Pennsylvania. He lives in Monroeville, Pennsylvania, with his wife and three children. He spends most of his free time living and dying with the exploits of his three favorite teams—the Steelers, the Pirates, and the Penguins. Finoli is the author of Classic Bucs: The 50 Greatest Games in Pittsburgh Pirates History (The Kent State University Press, 2013).

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments xi

Introduction xiii

#50 From Humble Beginnings: Pirates 14, Chicago Cardinals 13, September 27, 1933 1

#49 The First Glimpse: Steelers 28, Cleveland Browns 9, November 29, 1970 5

#48 The Steel Curtain: Steelers 21, Houston Oilers 0, December 11, 1976 9

#47 Three Out of Three Ain't Bad: Steelers 29, Cleveland Browns 9, January 7, 1995 13

#46 For One Day: Steelers 24, Green Bay Packers 17, December 17, 1967 17

#45 The Last Waltz: Steelers 13, Los Angeles Raiders 7, December 16, 1984 21

#44 Replacing Frenchy: Steelers 27, Cleveland Browns 7, December 7, 2006 25

#43 The Mirage: Steelers 16, Detroit Lions 13, September 21, 1969 29

#42 Super Bowl XIII 1/2: Steelers 14, Dallas Cowboys 3, October 28, 1979 33

#41 The Postseason Waters: Steelers 17, Boston Yanks 7, December 7, 1947 37

#40 Big Ben Comes of Age: Steelers 24, Dallas Cowboys 20, October 17, 2004 41

#39 On the Legs of Kordell: Steelers 7, New England Patriots 6, January 3, 1998 45

#38 A Fraction of an Inch: Steelers 13, Baltimore Ravens 9, December 14, 2008 49

#37 One in a Million: Steelers 31, Tampa Bay Buccaneers 22, December 24, 1989 53

#36 The 500-Yard Passer: Steelers 37, Green Bay Packers 36, December 20, 2009 57

#35 Winning Ugly: Stealers 20, Dallas Cowboys 13, December 7, 2008 63

#34 The Cowher Era: Steelers 29, Houston Oilers 24, September 6, 1992 69

#33 Through the Air: Steelers 37, Chicago Bears 34, November 5, 1995 73

#32 The 1,000-Yard Barrier: Steelers 19, St. Louis Cardinals 7, December 2, 1962 77

#31 The Wheels on the Bus: Steelers 2h Chicago Bears 9, December 11, 2005 81

#30 We Dey: Steelers 31, Cincinnati Bengals 17, January 6, 2006 85

#29 An Old-Fashioned Blowout: Steelers 40, Baltimore Colts 14, December 19t 1976 91

#28 The Kicker's Graveyard: Steelers 20, New York Jets 17, January 15, 2005 95

#27 Champions at Last: Steelers 24, San Diego Chargers 2, December 17, 1972 99

#26 Changing of the Guard: Steelers 35, Philadelphia Eagles 24, October 19, 1947 103

#25 Streak Breakers: Steelers 34, New England Patriots 20, October 31, 2004 105

#24 A Quagmire on Turf: Steelers 34, Houston Oilers 5, January 7, 1979 109

#23 Road Warriors: Steelers 34, Denver Broncos 17, January 22, 2006 113

#22 The Lone Blemish: Steelers 20, San Francisco 49ers 17, October 14, 1984 117

#21 The Fifty-Yard Miracle: Steelers 26, Houston Oilers 23, December 31, 1989 123

#20 From the Jaws of Defeat: Steelers 31, Baltimore Ravens 24, January 15, 2011 129

#19 Jefferson Street Joe: Stetlers 30, Baltimore Colts 0, September 15, 1974 135

#18 The Ice Man Cometh: Steelers 16, Oakland Raiders 10, January 4, 1976 139

#17 The Year of the Steelers: Steelers 34, Oakland Raiders 28, September 17, 1972 143

#16 A Guarantee Gone Bad: Steelers 24, New York Jets 19, January 23, 2011 147

#15 A Case for Instant Replay: Steelers 27, Houston Oilers 13, January 6, 1980 153

#14 A Monumental Upset: Steelers 24, Denver Broncos 17, December 30, 1984 157

#13 The Offensive Explosion: Steelers 63, New York Giants 7, November 30,1952 161

#12 Our Idiot Kicker: Steelers 21, Indianapolis Colts 18, January 15, 2006 165

#11 Epic Comeback: Steelers 36, Cleveland Browns 33, January 5, 2003 171

#10 City of Champions: Steelers 31, Los Angeles Rams 19, January 20, 1980 177

#9 Win One for the Home Team: Steelers 23, Baltimore Ravens 14, January 18, 2009 181

#8 One for the Thumb: Steelers 21, Seattle Seahawks 10, February 6, 2006 185

#7 Over the Hump: Steelers 24, Oakland Raiders 13, December 29, 1974 189

#6 Redemption: Steelers 20, Indianapolis Colts 16, January 14, 1996 193

#5 Baryshnikov in Cleats: Steelers 21, Dallas Cowboys 17, January 18,1976 199

#4 14,723 Days: Steelers 16, Minnesota Vikings 6, January 12, 1975 205

#3 C-A-T: Steelers 35, Dallas Cowboys 31, January 21, 1979 209

#2 The Immaculate Reception: Steelers 13, Oakland Raiders 7, December 23, 1972 215

#1 That's How You Be Great: Steelers 27, Arizona Cardinals 23, February 1, 2009 219

Notes 225