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SUPER BOWL III CONFERENCE CALL

The NFL will conduct a conference call on Tuesday, January 5 at 2:00 PM ET to preview the 30th anniversary of Super Bowl III. Scheduled for the call are three principals of the game – JOE NAMATH and DAVE HERMAN of the Jets and JOHN MACKEY of the Colts. The number to call: 816/650-0704, password, "NFL."

It was the first game officially entitled "Super Bowl."

In retrospect, the January 12, 1969 AFL-NFL Championship Game might have aptly been billed as the "Super Shocker."

In the first two Super Bowls, the National Football League’s representative trounced the American Football League’s by a combined 68-24 score.

This time, the AFL-champion New York Jets faced the best team from the NFL – a Baltimore Colts squad which rolled to a 13-1 regular-season record on the strength of the league’s top defense (10.3 points per game). The Colts had three regular-season shutouts and blanked the Cleveland Browns 34-0 in the NFL Championship Game. On offense, Baltimore featured NFL MVP EARL MORRALL, who threw an NFL-high 26 touchdown passes.

"When the AFL started, we were an underdog, " says FOX-TV analyst JOHN MADDEN, who was an assistant coach for the Oakland Raiders team which lost to Green Bay in Super Bowl II. "We were always the underdog."

Especially in January 1969. The Jets were overwhelming underdogs in Super Bowl III.

THE GUARANTEE -- The Jets were by no means a pushover. Three Jets – quarterback JOE NAMATH, wide receiver GEORGE SAUER, JR., and defensive end GERRY PHILBIN – were named to the AFL-NFL all-pro team in 1968. In addition, 13 Jets were named to the AFL all-star team.

The club had scored 419 points – a team record which still stands. Defensively, the Jets featured the AFL’s top overall and top rushing defense, tying the Dallas Cowboys (85.4) for football’s top mark in the latter.

But statistics didn’t help the Jets in the eyes of the media and the public. Most of the media picked the Colts to win, with four writers predicting a Baltimore victory by at least 38 points.

On the Thursday before the game, Namath was accepting his Pro Football Player of the Year award at the Miami Touchdown Club when an enthusiastic Colts fan interrupted. He boasted that his team would conquer the Jets -- prompting sport’s most publicized promise.

"I said ‘Wait a minute,’" recalled Namath. "’You guys – Colts’ fans and the media – have been talking for two weeks now.’ I said ‘I’m tired of hearing it. I have news for you. We’re going to win the game. I guarantee it.’"

Jets head coach WEEB EWBANK was not too pleased with Namath’s proclamation. "I talked to him at our meeting the next day," Ewbank said. "I said, ‘Dadgummit, why did you say that? We had them right where we wanted them.’"

Namath’s promise turned Super Bowl III from a much-anticipated championship game into a national spectacle.

"They could have sold 150,000 tickets to the game," said CURT GOWDY, who broadcast the game on NBC-TV. "Tickets were never more scarce in Miami."

Tickets were scarce, but for the 75,377 fans who paid $12 for a ticket to the Orange Bowl (not to mention the 55 million watching on television), the price of admission was well worth it.

THE FIRST HALF -- The Jets were the visitors, won the coin flip and elected to receive.

New York started the game’s first drive from its own 23-yard line. While the Jets didn’t score, they set the tone for the rest of the afternoon.

"On the very first play of the game," said Namath, "Coach Ewbank had us come out in a normal formation and then we shifted. The reason was to give (Colts head coach DON) SHULA and their defense something to think about. We didn’t put in any special plays at all. Not one special running play. Not one special passing play."

It was the only unusual formation the Jets used all game.

After gaining one first down and advancing as far as their 40-yard line, the Jets punted.

The Colts opened with a 54-yard drive to the Jets’ 19, but missed a 27-yard field goal.

The first quarter was scoreless – one of only four such opening periods in Super Bowl history. But Baltimore’s missed opportunity was a sign of later trouble for them in the red zone.

The Colts, beneficiaries of a Jets’ fumble deep in New York territory at the end of the first quarter, opened the second period on the Jets’ 11-yard line. After halfback TOM MATTE rushed seven yards to the New York six, the Colts wasted another scoring chance. Morrall’s third-down pass was tipped by Jets linebacker AL ATKINSON and intercepted by cornerback RANDY BEVERLY in the end zone.

The ensuing possession was a methodical and balanced Jets drive featuring seven runs (six by MATT SNELL for 35 yards) and five Namath passes (four completed for 43 yards). The 12-play, 80-yard march ate up five minutes and six seconds off the clock and was capped by a four-yard touchdown run over left tackle by Snell, who rushed for a game-high 121 yards on 30 carries. Thus, Beverly’s interception helped turn a possible three- or seven-point Baltimore edge into a 7-0 New York advantage.

Noted Namath, who threw three of the drive’s five passes in Sauer’s direction: "We went to Sauer, we went to Sauer and we went to Sauer, because the Colts respected DON MAYNARD’s lightning (speed)." Sauer, who had a game-high eight catches for 133 yards, made a key 14-yard reception on a third-and-four from Baltimore’s 48 to keep the drive going.

"Namath did an exceptional job," said Shula. "When we did come with the blitz, other quarterbacks weren’t able to handle it. But Namath with his quick release was able to get rid of the ball and his receivers made quick adjustments against our defensive backs. Instead of us creating havoc with the blitz, they beat the blitz and made big plays to help them win the game."

Baltimore’s offense, meanwhile, was not making the big plays. On the Colts’ next two possessions after New York’s score, they drove 40 yards but missed a 46-yard field goal, and 65 yards but were intercepted on the Jets’ two-yard line.

With 43 seconds left in the first half, Baltimore had excellent field position after returning a punt to the New York 42. Following a one-yard completion, the Colts called a trick play.

Morrall handed off to Matte who lateraled back to Morrall. Colts wide receiver JIMMY ORR was wide open in the end zone – right where the Baltimore Colts Marching Band was situated. "Our band had blue and white uniforms" (matching the Colts’ colors), explained Matte. "Earl never saw Jimmy in the end zone. I thought that was really the turning point." Instead, Morrall threw for running back JERRY HILL and was intercepted by safety JIM HUDSON on the New York 12.

"In coaching, you always want to stress that you have to take advantage of the opportunities to put points up, and we didn’t in that first half," said Shula.

Six first-half Baltimore drives resulted in one three-and-out, two missed field goals and three passes intercepted inside New York’s 15-yard line.

THE SECOND HALF -- Things didn’t get any easier for the Colts.

On their first play from scrimmage, Matte fumbled on the 33-yard line. The Jets recovered and increased their lead to 10-0 on JIM TURNER’s 32-yard field goal.

The Colts’ next drive resulted in three plays for minus-two yards and a punt. New York then drove 45 yards in 10 plays and kicked a field goal for a 13-0 advantage.

Shula then called on the legendary JOHN UNITAS to replace Morrall.

But the Colts went three and out again. New York followed with a three-minute, 58-second drive which covered 61 yards and yielded another field goal. Jets 16, Colts 0.

"You may be watching one of sport’s greatest upsets in history," said Gowdy on the NBC broadcast.

It took Baltimore nearly 57 minutes of game time to get on the scoreboard, reaching the end zone on a one-yard run by Hill with 3:19 remaining. It was now Jets 16, Colts 7. The crowd began to stir. Unitas had completed three of his last four passes for 43 yards.

Baltimore then recovered an onside kick. With 3:14 remaining in the fourth quarter, trailing by nine, the Colts had possession on the New York 44. Baltimore reached the New York 19 before stalling on three incomplete passes.

Unitas was game – attempting 24 passes in the contest’s final 20 minutes – but Super Bowl III ended in a 16-7 New York victory. The upstarts from the American Football League had captured professional football’s holy grail – a Super Bowl trophy.

THE AFTERMATH -- "There was a party in New York for about a month," said Jets cornerback JOHNNY SAMPLE. "People were so happy and so proud of the New York Jets, as if they were a part of the team. And they were."

Don Maynard looks at the historical aspect of the victory. "As you study football history," he says, "you realize that that game was part of history just like the (1958) Giants-Colts (NFL Championship) game. They did more for football and the NFL than any other two games ever did."

The man who guaranteed the win, Namath, is still surprised at the game’s impact.

"I never dreamed about Super Bowl III being reflected upon so much by so many," says Namath. "I didn’t think about leaving a mark or that kind of thing. How could I? It’s like looking at a crystal ball and saying what it is going to be like. I never thought the Triborough Bridge would be more than 25 cents to cross either, until I paid three bucks."

And the man who broadcast it, Gowdy, says it was his biggest game.

"I’ve broadcast sports for 50 years," said Gowdy. "I’ve done eight Super Bowls, a lot of Rose Bowls and Orange Bowls, World Series, 18 or 20 NCAA tournaments, and eight Olympics. As I look back, my most memorable game was Super Bowl III because of its historical importance as one of the biggest upsets of all-time in sports. That game will always stand out as the most memorable event in my broadcasting career."

SUPER BALL -- At his press conference two days before the game, NFL Commissioner PETE ROZELLE announced that the AFL-NFL Championship game would be called Super Bowl III. The named was derived from the "super ball" which was a favorite toy of the children of Kansas City Chiefs founder LAMAR HUNT.

• Namath attempted no fourth-quarter passes in the game. The Jets ran the ball 15 times in the period.

• Pro Football Hall of Fame wide receiver Maynard, who led the ’68 Jets with 1,297 receiving yards and 10 touchdown receptions, did not catch a single pass in Super Bowl III.

• The Jets held the ball for 36:25 compared to the Colts’ 23:35.

• The game featured 1968’s AFL Player of the Year (Namath) and NFL Most Valuable Player (Morrall).

• Turner, who connected on a then-NFL record 34 field goals in 1968, kicked a nine-yard field goal, his third of the game, that tied for shortest in Super Bowl history.

• All four of New York’s interceptions came inside their own 15-yard line, including two in the end zone.

• The Colts had 38 turnovers in 14 regular-season and two NFL playoff games in ’68 – an average of 2.4 per contest. They had five turnovers in Super Bowl III.

• The game featured seven future Pro Football Hall of Famers – Ewbank, Maynard and Namath from the Jets; tight end JOHN MACKEY, defensive backfield coach CHUCK NOLL, Shula and Unitas of the Colts.

• Jets wide receiver George Sauer, Jr.’s father GEORGE was New York’s head scout.

• There were 834 media credentials issued, compared to 3,227 for Super Bowl XXXII.

• At least 10 national media members picked the Colts to beat the Jets by 30 points or more, including four writers who said the Colts would shut out the Jets and win by at least 38 points.

WEEB WAS WOBBLED -- Weeb Ewbank used a cane to get around Super Bowl week, the result of an injury incurred after winning the AFL Championship Game against Oakland. He injured his right hip when a fan grabbed his leg as his players were carrying him off the field on their shoulders.

Ewbank was the Colts’ head coach from 1954-62, an added plus for the Jets.

"He knew our personnel as well as anybody," said Matte, "because all the players who were with us had played for Weeb in 1962."

TV TIME -- In a television season in which "Gomer Pyle," "Bonanza," "Mayberry R.F.D.," "Gunsmoke," "The Dean Martin Show" and "The Beverly Hillbillies" ranked among network television’s top 10 programs, Super Bowl III was the second-highest rated show in 1969. Following are the top five telecasts of 1969:

In all, 70 percent of televisions that were on were tuned to Super Bowl III.

OUT OF THIS WORLD -- Three Apollo 8 astronauts – BILL ANDERS, FRANK BORMAN and JIM LOVELL – attended the title game. "It was the most exciting game I’ve ever seen," said Borman. "I think the results were good for professional football. Namath was sensational."

GOING TO DISNEYLAND? -- When asked what he had planned for the rest of the winter after the Jets’ Super Bowl win, George Sauer, Jr., a pre-med and math major at the University of Texas, said he was working on a novel. About sports? "No," he said. "This will be a serious effort."