Jordan Stephenson
South Bureau Chief
The Super Bowl took place on Sunday, February 11 with one of the most epic Super Bowl rematches, the Chiefs vs 49ers, in Las Vegas, Nevada, at the Allegiant Stadium. Super Bowl 58, encapsulated the most watched tv program of all time, with 123.7 million plus viewing on CBS, which was essentially a 7 percent increase from last year’s Super Bowl. This was an average scoring Super Bowl (25-22), even with the game going to OT for just the second time in NFL history; the last time was when Brady and the Patriots made an epic 28-3 comeback vs the Falcons.
The most important matchup in the Super Bowl was Patrick Mahomes vs Brock Purdy and their performances were good even with both teams playing great defense. Christian McCaffrey started the festivities in the 1st quarter, with a costly fumble in field goal range, when he rarely fumbled all season. The Chiefs punted multiple times that quarter, and the 1st quarter ended with a tied score of 0-0, with both teams still competing and making adjustments.
The 2nd quarter started with the 1st score of the game, with a 55-yard field goal by Jake Moody and the 49ers. The 49ers defense stifled the Chiefs into a 1st career fumble by Isiah Pacheco, recovered by Javon Hargrave and then had a perfect opportunity to increase their lead. The 49ers used one of their trick plays, which was a 21-yard touchdown pass from receiver Jauan Jennings to McCaffrey, which gave the 49ers a 10-0 lead, which was also Kyle Shanahan’s 3rd 10 point plus lead in a Super Bowl. The Chiefs were finally able to pivot by sustaining a 13-play drive, by Harrison Butker making a 28 yard field goal, which was their 1st points of the game. If Shanahan had executed with his clock management skills and called the timeouts when needed before halftime then the 49ers could’ve had another great opportunity to score again. The 49ers sadly only took a 10-3 lead, going into halftime when the majority of NFL analysts knew they left points on the board.
Usher’s spectacular halftime show, that was sponsored by Apple Music, absolutely had people buzzing on social media continuously for multiple reasons. One was that when he performed his different classic hits and singles, from his archive, people were definitely clamoring for different special guests he brought out; the other was that he used eye popping outfits with different choreography routines, in a 13-minute performance that proved to be a spectacular spectacle. The songs from his archive included: Love in this Club, My Boo, OMG, U got it Bad, Yeah, etc. The special guest artist that Usher brought out included: JSU Sonic Boom of the South marching band with members of the Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity Inc, Alicia Keys, Will.i.am, H.E.R., Lil Jon, Ludacris. Also, fans were wondering why Justin Bieber wasn’t brought on stage to perform as well.
The second half definitely proved to be more entertaining, with the Chiefs trying to strike first, but sadly Mahomes threw an interception on the first drive by Ji’Ayir Brown, but the 49ers couldn’t capitalize off of the Mahomes interception. The Chiefs finally scored again by Butker making another field goal, which was a 57-yard Super Bowl record field goal. Then an unfortunate special teams’ blunder by the 49ers took place, when the punted ball hit the back foot of a 49ers player, which he didn’t even know, so the punt returner tried to run to recover the ball, but accidentally ran past it, which led to the Chiefs easily recovering the muffed punt. This momentum altering play led to the Chiefs scoring their first touchdown and securing their first lead of the game, with Mahomes throwing a 16-yard touchdown pass to Marquez Valdes-Scantling (MVS). Then the 49ers responded with a clutch touchdown, which was Purdy throwing a 10-yard touchdown pass to Jennings.
Unfortunately another special teams blunder took place for the 49ers, when Moody’s extra point was blocked, which proved to be extremely detrimental. Then the Chiefs tied the game 16-16, with another field goal by Butker (24 yards). Moody and Butker both traded clutch field goals respectively, 53 and a 29 yarder, with Butker hitting the game-tying field goal to go to OT, with the score tied 19-19. The 49ers won the coin toss, decided to receive the ball first, but had to settle for a 27-yard field goal by Moody, because they weren’t able to score a touchdown. Mahomes then orchestrated a clutch final drive that ended with him throwing a three-yard touchdown pass to Mecole Hardman, which secured the Chiefs second consecutive Super Bowl. This definitely allowed the Chiefs, to win their third championship in five years, and basically solidified the Chiefs as an official dynasty. Mahomes won his third Super Bowl MVP, which has most definitely catapulted him into rarefied air in NFL history, also closer to the GOAT in Tom Brady.
