A tradition surrounding the Super Bowl is for the winning team to visit the White House to meet the president of the United States. In 1972, big news broke when the president’s engagement came before the big game.
Super Bowl VI was a clash between the Dallas Cowboys and the Miami Dolphins, teams led by iconic coaches Tom Landry and Don Shula. The Cowboys came out victorious 24-3.
Nixon was a big sports fan (photo, BroBible)
Richard Nixon, an avid sports fan, was the U.S. President at the time. The Dolphins (a Nixon favorite) were a six-point underdog heading into the big game, and that was when Nixon decided to offer assistance to his favorite team.
He phoned Shula in the early morning hours of Super Bowl Sunday and suggested a play call to the erstwhile pro coach. It was a “down and in” pass play to receiver Paul Warfield.
What did Shula do? He used it near the end of the first quarter. Unfortunately, for the Dolphins and Nixon, the Bob Griese-to-Warfield pass play didn’t work. The Cowboys’ Mel Renfro broke it up.
After the game, Nixon sent Shula a telegram promising never to call another play should the Dolphins get back to the big game. Far from a sore loser, Nixon also sent Landry a congratulatory message.
The Miami Dolphins would, in fact, make it to the Super Bowl again, four more times to date, including each of the next two seasons. They would win Super Bowls VII (1973) and VIII (1974). The 1972 Dolphins (Super Bowl VII) are still the only undefeated Super Bowl championship team.
Despite Nixon’s affection for the Miami Dolphins, Tom Landry and the Cowboys had close ties to the White House during the Nixon years. But he and his team didn’t make their celebratory trip to DC right away. Landry met Nixon in Washington on January 1, 1973.
