Tampa Super Bowl Heroes Marcus Allen, Ottis Anderson, Tom Flores and Bill Parcells to Take Part in Super Bowl XXXV Coin Toss at Tampa's Raymond James Stadium

Business Wire, Jan 8, 2001

Sports Editors & Football Columnists

TAMPA, Fla.--(BW SportsWire)--Jan. 8, 2001

Heroes from the two previous Tampa Super Bowls (XVIII & XXV) will be saluted in the pre-game coin toss for Super Bowl XXXV on Sunday, Jan. 28, 2001, at Tampa's Raymond James Stadium, the National Football League announced today.

Tampa Super Bowl MVPs Marcus Allen (1984) and Ottis Anderson (1991) will be reunited with their coaches, Tom Flores and Bill Parcells, for the ceremony.

In Super Bowl XVIII on Jan. 22, 1984, the Los Angeles Raiders dominated the Washington Redskins from the outset and achieved what at the time was the most lopsided victory in Super Bowl history, 38-9, before 72,920 fans at Tampa Stadium. The Raiders took a 7-0 lead 4:52 into the game when Derrick Jensen blocked a Jeff Hayes punt and recovered it in the end zone for a touchdown. With 9:14 remaining in the first half, Raiders quarterback Jim Plunkett threw a 12-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Cliff Branch to complete a three-play, 65-yard drive.

Washington cut the Raiders' lead to 14-3 on a 24-yard field goal by Mark Moseley. With seven seconds left in the first half, Raiders linebacker Jack Squirek intercepted a Joe Theismann pass at the Redskins' five-yard line and ran it in for a touchdown for a 21-3 halftime advantage.

Raiders running back Marcus Allen took control of the game in the third quarter with touchdown runs of five and 74 yards. The 74-yard scamper remains the longest run from scrimmage in Super Bowl history and is one of the NFL Championship's most recognizable plays. Allen rushed for a then-Super Bowl record 191 yards on 20 carries to earn Super Bowl XVIII most valuable player honors.

The victory over Washington raised Raiders coach Tom Flores' playoff record to 8-1, including a 27-10 victory against Philadelphia in Super Bowl XV.

In Super Bowl XXV, played on Jan. 27, 1991, at Tampa Stadium, the New York Giants won their second Super Bowl in five years with a 20-19 victory over the Buffalo Bills. Employing a dominating ball control offense, The Giants set a Super Bowl record for possession with 40 minutes, 33 seconds. The Bills, who scored 95 points in their previous two playoff games leading to Super Bowl XXV, had the ball for less than eight minutes in the second half and just 19:27 for the game.

Fourteen of New York's 73 plays came on its initial 75-yard drive of the third quarter. The Giants consumed a Super Bowl-record 9:29 that culminated with running back Otis Anderson crossing the goal line for a one-yard touchdown. Giants quarterback Jeff Hostetler kept the long drive going by converting three third-down plays, giving New York a 17-12 lead in the third quarter.

Buffalo jumped to a 12-3 lead midway through the second quarter before Hostetler completed a 14-yard scoring strike to wide receiver Stephen Baker to close the score to 12-10 at halftime. Buffalo's Thurman Thomas ran 31 yards for a touchdown on the opening play of the fourth quarter to help Buffalo recapture the lead, 19-17.

After Matt Bahr's 21-yard field goal gave the Giants a 20-19 lead, Buffalo's Scott Norwood had a chance to win the game with seconds remaining. However, his 47-yard field goal attempt sailed wide right. Anderson rushed 21 times for 102 yards and one touchdown to capture most valuable player honors.

The tradition of the Super Bowl coin toss involving former greats of the game began at Super Bowl XII in 1978 with legendary halfback Red Grange. A specially minted coin commemorating previous Super Bowl games has been used in 22 of the past 25 Super Bowls.

The 2001 Super Bowl coin, minted by Commemorative Brands, will feature the helmets of the two participating teams and the Super Bowl XXXV logo.

Allen (SB XXX), Anderson (SB XXX) and Flores (SB XXXI) will be participating in their second coin toss ceremony. Six other legends have participated twice--Bart Starr (SB XX & XXX), Joe Namath (SB XXVIII & XXX), Terry Bradshaw (SB XXIV & XXX), Tom Landry (SB XXXI & XXXIII), Doug Williams (SB XXX & XXXII) and Chuck Noll (SB XXVI & XXXI).

The honor roll for the Super Bowl coin toss is as follows:

Super Bowl XII             Red Grange
Super Bowl XIII            George Halas
Super Bowl XIV             Art Rooney
Super Bowl XV              Marie Lombardi
Super Bowl XVI             Bobby Layne
Super Bowl XVII            Elroy Hirsch
Super Bowl XVIII           Bronko Nagurski
Super Bowl XIX             President Ronald Reagan and Hugh McElhenny
Super Bowl XX              Bart Starr
Super Bowl XXI             Willie Davis
Super Bowl XXII            Don Hutson
Super Bowl XXIII           Nick Buoniconti, Bob Griese and
                            Larry Little
Super Bowl XXIV            Mel Blount, Terry Bradshaw, Art Shell and
                            Willie Wood
Super Bowl XXV             Pete Rozelle
Super Bowl XXVI            Chuck Noll
Super Bowl XXVII           O.J. Simpson
Super Bowl XXVIII          Joe Namath
Super Bowl XXIX            Otto Graham, Joe Greene, Ray Nitschke and
                            Gale Sayers
Super Bowl XXX             Super Bowl Most Valuable Players
                            (Joe Montana tossed coin)
Super Bowl XXXI            Mike Ditka, Tom Flores, Tom Landry,
                            Chuck Noll, George Seifert and Hank Stram
Super Bowl XXXII           Joe Gibbs, Eddie Robinson and Doug Williams
Super Bowl XXXIII          Raymond Berry, Roosevelt Brown,
                            Art Donovan, Frank Gifford, Sam Huff,
                            Tom Landry, Gino Marchetti, Don Maynard,
                            Lenny Moore, Jim Parker, Andy Robustelli
Super Bowl XXXIV           Bud Grant, Lamar Hunt, Bobby Bell,
                            Paul Krause, Willie Lanier, Alan Page,
                            Jan Stenerud
Super Bowl XXXV            Marcus Allen, Ottis Anderson, Tom Flores,
                            Bill Parcells