Super Bowl LVII will be played in the Phoenix Metropolitan Area, but the two cities with the most skin in the game are Kansas City and Philadelphia.
Philadelphia has had quite the last few months. The Phillies made the World Series, and in the same season, the Eagles find themselves playing in the big game.
How many times has this happened before? Newhouse Sports Media Center reporter Cameron Ezeir found out every other year the feat was achieved.
In Super Bowl V in 1971, the Baltimore Colts were victorious the same year the Baltimore Orioles won the World Series. Fourteen years later in 1984, the Baltimore Colts became the Indianapolis Colts.
Super Bowl XIV in 1980 saw the Pittsburgh Steelers defeat the Dallas Cowboys. Completing the double championship for the Steel City, the Pittsburgh Pirates won the 1979 World Series. For the Steelers, Super Bowl XIV was its fourth championship in the last six years, and for the NFL, it was only the second ever Super Bowl to eclipse more than 100,000 fans in attendance.
Just one year later, the Eagles and Phillies made their respective championship games. In Super Bowl XV, the Eagles lost to the Oakland Raiders, but the Phillies did win the World Series.
Fast forward to 1986 and “New York, New York” chants ensued as the New York Giants and Mets both made their title games. The Giants beat the Broncos in Super Bowl XXI and the Mets beat the Boston Red Sox in the World Series to cap off an impressive New York stretch.
Skip ahead fourteen years and the Super Bowl found its way to Florida. In Super Bowl XXXV in 2001, the Giants were downed by the Baltimore Ravens in Tampa. On the diamond, a memorable Subway Series World Series between the crosstown Yankees and Mets took place, with the Yankees winning it all in 2000.
Perhaps feeling left out seeing other Northeast cities achieve the feat, Massachusetts decided to join the party with help from Tom Brady and David Ortiz. Super Bowl XXXIX in 2005 resulted in a three point win for the New England Patriots, and the Red Sox swept the St. Louis Cardinals in the 2004 World Series. The championships were Brady’s third and Big Papi’s first.
Two more city success stories happened in the 2010s. 2012 was the Golden Gate year, where the San Francisco 49ers lost the Harbaugh bowl to the Ravens in Super Bowl XLVIII, but the San Francisco Giants conquered the baseball mountaintop, sweeping the Detroit Tigers.
In 2018, another New England Boston championship tandem had America debating where in the country “Titletown” really is. The Patriots capped off a championship season defeating the Los Angeles Rams in Super Bowl LIII in early 2019, and the 2018 World Series saw the Red Sox defeat the Los Angeles Dodgers. A two for one special with the City of Angels losing twice.
That leaves us with Super Bowl LVII this year. The Phillies already lost the 2022 World Series to the Houston Astros, but the Eagles will see if they can achieve some redemption when they take the field against the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday.
Kansas City Chiefs star defensive end Frank Clark is one of the best pass rushers in the National Football League, but many people don’t know he started his career in a two-point stance.
Clark started off playing safety in high school, and then his coach, Ted Ginn Sr., told him to put his hand in the dirt and start playing defensive end.
After high school, Clark went to the University of Michigan, added 60 pounds while not losing any of his speed and proceeded to dominate college football.
“I grew up like an Ed Reed fan, Sean Taylor, you know what I mean,” Clark said. “In my mind, I’m not playing no d-line. I wasn’t big enough either. I was only like 200 pounds coming out of high school, so I ain’t have like true d-line dreams, you know what I’m saying.”
Clark said plenty of mentors helped mold him into the player he is today.
“Trusting my training; man I had some great trainers,” Clark said. “Coach Aaron Wellman at the time at the University of Michigan. He was a hell of a trainer.”
“I just stuck with his program,” Clark said. “I had to trust him. I was playing Big Ten Football. At the end of the day, when you’re playing Big Ten Football, you can’t play Big Ten Football at 225 as a defensive end. You have to play Big Ten Football with a little bit of weight in your behind.”
After a long run of dominance and terror in the Big Ten, Clark was drafted by the Seattle Seahawks in the second round of the 2015 NFL Draft. He spent a couple of years in Seattle, but things didn’t necessarily work out, so he was traded to Kansas City and Chiefs Defensive Coordinator Steve Spagnuolo said Clark was an immediate impact for the organization.
“Frank is one of those competitive guys even in practice,” Spagnuolo said. “He’ll challenge guys. I think he made our offensive line better because he would practice and challenge people. He continues to do that.”
Spagnuolo said he had heard Clark wanted to play in the defensive backfield.
“He tells me that all the time,” Spagnuolo said. “He wants to go back there and play safety now, probably.”
Clark is no stranger to the big games and the big moments. In Super Bowl LIV in Miami in 2020, “The Shark” had the game-clinching sack against the San Francisco 49ers to seal the Vince Lombardi Trophy for the Chiefs.
Now, Clark has another chance to do the same thing three years later at Super Bowl LVII in Phoenix. He’s already got two and a half sacks this postseason, so there’s a good chance he could make another impact in the big game this weekend.
Super Bowl Opening Night offers an incredible opportunity for fans and media members to see the players and coaches of both participating teams under one roof.
For Super Bowl LVII, Super Bowl Opening Night presented by Fast Twitch was held at the Footprint Center, the home of the Phoenix Suns and the Phoenix Mercury.
Our entire Newhouse Sports Media Center Super Bowl team attended the event, and Newhouse Sports Media Center reporter Johnny Gadamowitz had three memorable interviews with three Philadelphia Eagles Players.
Gadamowitz spoke with defensive tackle Linval Joseph about his bench press numbers, tight end Dallas Goedert about the meaning behind his name, and punter Brett Kern about his go to Dinosaur Bar-B-Que order.
To check out some of the sights and sounds from the night, watch the video at the top of the page.
FOX Sports lead NFL voice Kevin Burkhardt is calling his first ever Super Bowl this weekend between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Philadelphia Eagles.
After the conclusion of the FOX Sports Media Day, Burkhardt took a few minutes to speak with Newhouse Sports Media Center reporter Johnny Gadamowitz.
Burkhardt said the moment he found out he was going to be on the call for a Super Bowl was nothing short of magic.
“It was wow, really me, that type of emotion,” Burkhardt said. “It was as you’d imagine, joy. I was a bit taken aback. We all get into this industry hoping to get lucky and be a part of some of the biggest events, and I’ve been fortunate to be a part of a lot of great events.”
“So when that call comes, it’s so hard to comprehend how special it is,” Burkhardt said. “I’m starting to comprehend it now because you’re here this week and all the fanfare that goes around this game is pretty cool. So I’m just trying to sleep. I’m so excited.”
In the past twenty years, only three individuals have called the national telecast of the Super Bowl, those being Jim Nantz, Al Michaels and Joe Buck. Burkhardt said he realizes the magnitude of the opportunity.
“It’s a true honor to be on that list,” Burkhardt said. “There’s been eleven play-by-play guys who have called the Super Bowl. It’s something that not many people in the world have had an opportunity to do, so I don’t take that lightly.”
“I can’t wait; I’m gonna to try to sleep Saturday night, but I’m just gonna enjoy it and really just have fun with it,” Burkhardt said. “It’s the only way I know how to do it.”
Reflecting back on his SNY days, Burkhardt said he learned a ton about himself as a field reporter for the New York Mets.
“First of all, I love all those guys,” Burkhardt said. “They were all helpful in mentoring me as a relatively new TV guy at the time.”
Burkhardt said he also learned he doesn’t have to be flawless on every call.
“I think it’s just live TV,” Burkhardt said. “It’s on your feet. I think sometimes people expect it to be perfect. You’re coming out of school; you’re looking for your first job; you’re gonna make mistakes. And everyone is gonna make mistakes.”
“The reality is you just don’t compound [mistakes],” Burkhardt said. “You move forward, you learn from those mistakes, and when you’re on the air for three hours straight, I guarantee you something is gonna slip out that I didn’t love or maybe I say something that wasn’t totally correct. You can’t let it eat you.”
Burkhardt said his SNY days ultimately prepared him for the unpredictability of the job.
“With those guys, what I learned is first of all, anything goes, because literally anything goes,” Burkhardt said. “And then it’s just being on your feet and being able to adapt. Being flexible on the air I think is so big. Just be you. Be loose. Have fun. Just pretend that camera is not even there. If you can do that, I think it’s a big part of what I took away from those guys.”
To see the full interview between Burkhardt and Gadamowitz, watch the video at the top of the page.