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| Date | January 17, 1971 | ||||||||||||||||||
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| Stadium | Miami Orange Bowl, Miami, Florida | ||||||||||||||||||
| MVP | Chuck Howley, linebacker | ||||||||||||||||||
| Favorite | Colts by 2.5 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Referee | Norm Schachter | ||||||||||||||||||
| Attendance | 79,204 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Ceremonies | |||||||||||||||||||
| National anthem | Tommy Loy (Trumpeter) | ||||||||||||||||||
| Coin toss | Norm Schachter | ||||||||||||||||||
| Halftime show | Southeast Missouri State College Marching Golden Eagles Band with Anita Bryant | ||||||||||||||||||
| TV in the United States | |||||||||||||||||||
| Network | NBC | ||||||||||||||||||
| Announcers | Curt Gowdy, Kyle Rote and Bill Enis | ||||||||||||||||||
| Nielsen ratings | 39.9 (est. 46 million viewers) | ||||||||||||||||||
| Market share | 75 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Cost of 30-second commercial | $72,000 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Radio in the United States | |||||||||||||||||||
| Network | NBC Radio | ||||||||||||||||||
| Announcers | Jay Randolph and Al DeRogatis | ||||||||||||||||||
Super Bowl V was an American football game played between the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Baltimore Colts and the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Dallas Cowboys to determine the National Football League (NFL) champion for the 1970 season. It was the fifth edition of the Super Bowl and the first modern-era NFL championship game. The Colts defeated the Cowboys by the score of 16–13 on a field goal with 5 seconds left in the game. The game was played on January 17, 1971, at the Orange Bowl in Miami, Florida, and was the first Super Bowl game played on artificial turf; specifically, the game was played on a Poly-Turf surface.
The game was the first Super Bowl played after the completion of the AFL–NFL merger. Beginning with this game and continuing to the present day, the Super Bowl has served as the NFL's championship game, with the winner of the AFC Championship Game and the winner of the NFC Championship Game facing off in the culmination of the NFL playoffs. As per the merger agreement, all 26 AFL and NFL teams were divided into two conferences with 13 teams in each. Along with the Colts, the Cleveland Browns and Pittsburgh Steelers agreed to join the ten AFL teams to form the AFC; the remaining 13 NFL teams formed the NFC. This explains why the Colts represented the NFL in Super Bowl III, but the AFC for Super Bowl V. Baltimore advanced to Super Bowl V after posting an 11–2–1 regular season record. Meanwhile, the Cowboys were making their first Super Bowl appearance after posting a 10–4 regular season record.
The game is often referred to as the "Blunder Bowl," "Blooper Bowl," or "Stupor Bowl" due to it being marred with poor play, a blocked PAT, missed opportunities, penalties, turnovers, and officiating miscues. The two teams combined for a Super Bowl record 11 turnovers, with five solely in the fourth quarter.[1] The Colts' seven turnovers remain the most committed by a Super Bowl champion. Dallas also set a Super Bowl record with 10 penalties, costing them 133 yards. It was finally settled when Colts rookie kicker Jim O'Brien made a 32-yard field goal with five seconds left in regulation time, then a Super Bowl record for least time in the lead for a champion.[2] Baltimore overcame a 13–6 deficit after three quarters and the loss of its starting quarterback Johnny Unitas to an injury in the second quarter. To date, the game is the only Super Bowl in which the Most Valuable Player Award was given to a member of the losing team: Cowboys' linebacker Chuck Howley, the first non-quarterback to win the award, after making two interceptions (sacks and tackles were not yet recorded).
Due to its blunders, the game is often regarded among the worst Super Bowls played,[3][4][5] but is also recognized as the title the Colts needed after losing Super Bowl III.[6]
- ^ Maule, Tex (January 25, 1971). "Eleven big mistakes". Sports Illustrated. p. 12.
- ^ Stood until Super Bowl LI, where the Patriots led for zero in-game seconds and won.
- ^ Bracy, Timothy (January 15, 2019). "The 10 Worst Super Bowl Games of All Time". Men's Journal. Retrieved February 2, 2022.
- ^ Bonesteel, Matt (January 31, 2019). "Ranking the top 5 worst Super Bowls". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved February 2, 2022.
- ^ "Super Bowl LIII wasn't the worst of all time, but it's up there". sports.yahoo.com. February 4, 2019. Retrieved February 2, 2022.
- ^ Klingaman, Mike (January 15, 2021). "Super Bowl V memories still crystal clear 50 years later for former Baltimore Colts". baltimoresun.com. Retrieved February 2, 2022.