Super Bowl XIV ‘Game Rewind’ on May 24

With live sporting events few and far between, it’s a great time to watch classic Pittsburgh Steelers games.

As it happens, in May and June a number of classic Steelers games will be featured in ‘Game Rewinds,’ beginning on May 24, when you’ll be able to watch Pittsburgh’s victory over the Los Angeles Rams in Super Bowl XIV, which took place on January 20, 1980, at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Calif.

‘Game Rewind’ coverage gets underway at 6 p.m. ET on the Steelers’ Facebook page and YouTube channel.

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‘Game Rewind’ Interviews with John Stallworth and Donnie Shell

Adding to the allure of the ‘Game Rewind’ broadcast, the Steelers have announced that they will intersperse special features throughout the game, including interviews with wide receiver John Stallworth and safety Donnie Shell. Among other things, Stallworth and Shell will discuss the feelings they had before kickoff, and reveal what head coach Chuck Noll related to the team at halftime, which came with the Rams leading 13-10.

Stallworth and Shell also weigh in on some of the pivotal plays that led to the Steelers’ 31-19 victory, including Stallworth’s 73-yard touchdown catch and Jack Lambert’s game-sealing interception.

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Fun Facts About Super Bowl XIV

A couple things you may not remember or know about Super Bowl XIV: The first is that the NFL wanted Art Rooney to handle the coin toss, but Rooney didn’t want to do it and only relented when NFL Commissioner Pete Rozelle insisted.

In the book Rooney: A Sporting Life, the authors recall how Rooney “was driven onto the field in an antique blue Duesenberg Phaeton convertible,” only to hand the coin to referee Fred Silva to flip. “I just didn’t feel comfortable doing it,” Rooney said afterward.

Another thing to note about the game is a statistical anomaly. In 1979 the Steelers led the NFL in turnovers committed with 52; the Rams committed the second-most turnovers that year with 49. (And that doesn’t include the 1979 playoffs!) These days, it’s almost inconceivable that the two most turnover-prone teams in the league would match up in the Super Bowl.

And if you include the postseason the Steelers committed 60 turnovers in 1979-80. But it could have been worse, as the Steelers recovered 21 fumbles that year.

Pittsburgh’s worst game of the 1979 season from a turnover perspective came in week 7 at Cincinnati, with two interceptions and seven fumbles lost for a total of nine. Not surprisingly, the Steelers lost, 34-10, though the Bengals were winless entering that contest.

The second-worst game came in week 12 at San Diego, when the Steelers committed eight turnovers in a 35-7 loss.

Pittsburgh got through just one game that season turnover-free, that being the week 9 home game against the Dallas Cowboys, which the Steelers won 14-3.

The team overcame all of its turnovers with the No. 1 ranked offense in the NFL, scoring 26 points per game. The 1979 defense ranked fifth among the NFL’s 28 teams, allowing just 16.4 points per game.

Placekicking was also a liability in 1979. Kicker Matt Bahr made only 12 of 24 field goals from 30+ yards.

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