Remember when the old Boomer threw for over 550 yds in one game to set an NFL record?
Following is another memory for the ages which we may have to live on for a few more years.
This was a game for the ages. The mighty San Francisco 49ers, who had to send separate planes to carry all their rings, come into Sun Devil Stadium (here on out referred to as “SDS”) to play this vagabond, gypsy team in their first go-’round in the desert.
The heavily favored 49ers, with Joe Montana, Jerry Rice, and all those Hall of Famers from that era, were all there. And being the justifiably heavily favored 49ers, they came out swinging, and took a commanding lead.
But as the late November Arizona sun was setting, a funny thing happened on their way to an easy victory over this rag-tag group. The Arizona Cardinals refused to lose.
The 49ers, going into the fourth quarter with a comfy 23-7, either relaxed, or were just the victims of an amazing fourth-quarter rally that gave the home team some much needed credibility.
The Cardinals were fresh off a payback win (of sorts) in God’s Toilet in Irving, Texas. They were 6-4, and still in the thick of the NFC East race.
“The Comeback” all started late in the third quarter, when QB Neil Lomax hit WR Roy ‘Jet Stream” Green on a 30 yard pass that took the goose-egg off the board, giving the Niners that 23-7 lead going into the final period.
After an Al DelGreco field goal out the Big Red in double digits, Lomax hit Ernie Jones (remember him?) with a 5 yard slant pass for a TD with just over five minutes left in the game. This pulled them within six at 23-17.
And although the 49ers had Montana, Rice, Tom Rathman, Roger Craig, and all the rest, the Cardinals defense had to stop them if they were to have a prayer.
They held Rice in check the whole game (1 reception, 5 yards), but Craig had amassed over 150 yards on the ground at that point.
But stop them they did.
Then, with time running down, Lomax lead the team on 'The Drive’ (shush, every team has one).
With under 20 seconds to go, Lomax hit Green on a play called a “89-69 seam” for a 9 yard touchdown pass with just three ticks left on the clock! It was pandemonium! It was bedlam! It was riots in the streets!
Ok, maybe not. But it DID give the Cardinals an amazing 24-23 victory, and a 7-4 record. Their coming-out season in Arizona had ‘Playoffs’ written all over it!
Sadly, they went on to lose their last five games, and finished ahead of the pathetic 3-13 Dallas Cowboys in 3rd place in the NFC East, missing the playoffs.
Following is another memory for the ages which we may have to live on for a few more years.
This was a game for the ages. The mighty San Francisco 49ers, who had to send separate planes to carry all their rings, come into Sun Devil Stadium (here on out referred to as “SDS”) to play this vagabond, gypsy team in their first go-’round in the desert.
The heavily favored 49ers, with Joe Montana, Jerry Rice, and all those Hall of Famers from that era, were all there. And being the justifiably heavily favored 49ers, they came out swinging, and took a commanding lead.
But as the late November Arizona sun was setting, a funny thing happened on their way to an easy victory over this rag-tag group. The Arizona Cardinals refused to lose.
The 49ers, going into the fourth quarter with a comfy 23-7, either relaxed, or were just the victims of an amazing fourth-quarter rally that gave the home team some much needed credibility.
The Cardinals were fresh off a payback win (of sorts) in God’s Toilet in Irving, Texas. They were 6-4, and still in the thick of the NFC East race.
“The Comeback” all started late in the third quarter, when QB Neil Lomax hit WR Roy ‘Jet Stream” Green on a 30 yard pass that took the goose-egg off the board, giving the Niners that 23-7 lead going into the final period.
After an Al DelGreco field goal out the Big Red in double digits, Lomax hit Ernie Jones (remember him?) with a 5 yard slant pass for a TD with just over five minutes left in the game. This pulled them within six at 23-17.
And although the 49ers had Montana, Rice, Tom Rathman, Roger Craig, and all the rest, the Cardinals defense had to stop them if they were to have a prayer.
They held Rice in check the whole game (1 reception, 5 yards), but Craig had amassed over 150 yards on the ground at that point.
But stop them they did.
Then, with time running down, Lomax lead the team on 'The Drive’ (shush, every team has one).
With under 20 seconds to go, Lomax hit Green on a play called a “89-69 seam” for a 9 yard touchdown pass with just three ticks left on the clock! It was pandemonium! It was bedlam! It was riots in the streets!
Ok, maybe not. But it DID give the Cardinals an amazing 24-23 victory, and a 7-4 record. Their coming-out season in Arizona had ‘Playoffs’ written all over it!
Sadly, they went on to lose their last five games, and finished ahead of the pathetic 3-13 Dallas Cowboys in 3rd place in the NFC East, missing the playoffs.
