Super Bowl I

Super Bowl I was the first championship game in professional American football.  At the time it was called First AFL-NFL World Championship Game.   It was played on January 15, 1967 at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in Los Angeles, California. The National Football League (NFL) champion Green Bay Packers defeated the American Football League (AFL) champion Kansas City Chiefs. The score was 35–10.

Super Bowl I was the only Super Bowl in history that was not a sellout in terms of attendance.  Of the 94,000 seat capacity in the Coliseum, 33,000 went unsold.

The game was broadcast on NBC and CBS.  It is the only Super Bowl to be on two television networks.  Each network used its own announcers. Ray Scott, Jack Whitaker, and Frank Gifford were on CBS. Curt Gowdy and Paul Christman were on NBC.

Kansas City Chiefs
The Chiefs entered the game after an 11-2-1 during the regular season. In the AFL Championship Game, they beat the Buffalo Bills, 31-7.

Kansas City's offense led the AFL in points scored (448) and total rushing yards (2,274). Their trio of running backs, Mike Garrett (801 yards), Bert Coan (521 yards), and Curtis McClinton (540 yards) all ranked among the top ten rushers in the AFL. Quarterback Len Dawson was the top rated passer in the AFL.  He completed 159 out of 284 (56 percent) of his passes for 2,527 yards and 26 touchdowns. Wide receiver Otis Taylor had 58 receptions of 1,297 yards and 8touchdowns.  Receiver Chris Burford added 58 receptions for 758 yards and 8 touchdowns.

The Chiefs also had a strong defense. All-AFL players Jerry Mays and Buck Buchanan were on their line. Linebacker Bobby Bell was great at run stopping and pass coverage. The strongest part of their defense was their secondary, led by All-AFL safeties Johnny Robinson and Bobby Hunt, who each recorded 10 interceptions, and defensive back Fred Williamson, who recorded 4. Their Head Coach was Hank Stram.

Green Bay Packers
The Packers were an NFL dynasty.  They turned around what had been a losing team just eight years earlier. The team posted an NFL-worst 1–10–1 record in 1958.  Then legendary head coach Vince Lombardi was hired in January 1959. Lombardi wanted to build a winning team. During the offseason, he signed Fred "Fuzzy" Thurston. Lombardi also made a big trade with the Cleveland Browns that brought three players to the team.  These players became an important part of the defense: linemen Henry Jordan, Willie Davis, and Bill Quinlan.

Lombardi's hard work paid off.  The Packers improved to a 7–5 regular season record in 1959. They surprised the league during the following year by making it all the way to the 1960 NFL Championship Game. The Packers lost 17–13 to the Philadelphia Eagles.  But they showed that they were no longer losers. Green Bay went on to win NFL Championships in 1961, 1962, 1965, 1966, and 1967.

Packers quarterback Bart Starr was the top-rated quarterback in the NFL for 1966.  He won the NFL Most Valuable Player Award, completing 156 out of 251 (62.2 percent) passes for 2,257 yards, 14 touchdowns, and only 3 interceptions. His top targets were wide receivers Boyd Dowler and Carroll Dale.  They combined for 63 receptions for 1,336 yards. Fullback Jim Taylor was the team's top rusher with 705 yards, and also caught 41 passes for 331 yards.Bart Starr, "Super Bowl I," Super Bowl: The Game of Their Lives, Danny Peary, Editor. Macmillan, 1997  The Packers offensive line was also big reason for the team's success.  They were led by All-Pro guards Jerry Kramer and Thurston, along with Forrest Gregg.

Ceremonies and entertainment
The first Super Bowl halftime show had American trumpeter Al Hirt, and the marching bands from the University of Arizona and Grambling State University.

The postgame, trophy presentation ceremony was handled by CBS' Pat Summerall and NBC's George Ratterman. Summerall and Ratterman had to share a single microphone.

References

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Category:1967 in California
Category:Kansas City Chiefs
Category:Green Bay Packers
Category:1967 in sports
Category:1960s in Los Angeles, California
Category:January events