The Hot Corner
The stage is set for Super Bowl LIV.
The high-flying Kansas City Chiefs will take on the San Francisco 49ers and their dominant front seven, setting the stage for an entertaining game.
Being a Cowboys fan, I can’t bring myself to root for the 49ers even if I love watching Nick Bosa play football. While I am not exactly high on the Chiefs either, they are led by Tyler native Patrick Mahomes. After his playing days at Texas Tech, I am sure the football fans around here are very aware of him. So with his being a Texas boy, I am inclined to pull for the Chiefs.
While I was watching Mahomes torch the Tennessee Titans last weekend, a question popped up in my head. How many players from Texas will play in the Super Bowl?
The answer is not many.
On the Chiefs’ roster, the only other Texans are second year safety Armani Watts and seventh year defensive end, Alex Okafor. Watts was a hard-hitting safety during his time at Texas A&M and has gone on to some success so far in his young NFL career. Okafor was a dominant edge rusher for the Longhorns who was drafted in the fourth round by Arizona in 2014.
If you are looking for a reason to pull for the 49ers, the number of Texans on the roster isn’t that edge, as both teams have three Texas natives on the roster.
Marquise Goodwin is probably the most notable on the 49ers, being a Rowlett native who went on to be known for his track star speed at the University of Texas before making the jump to the NFL. Damontre Moore is another Rowlett native and the sixth year defensive end was the leader of the Aggie defense that played alongside 2012 Heisman winner Johnny Manziel. Also known as “Damonster,” Moore has bounced around the NFL, playing with the New York Giants, Miami Dolphins, Seattle, Dallas, Oakland and even in the American Alliance of Football (AAF), with the San Diego Fleet. Second year running back Jeff Wilson ran for more than 3,000 yards while playing for the Mean Green at the University of North Texas and after going un-drafted in 2019, has gone on to be a solid backup running back for the 49ers in his second year.
The Super Bowl was always my favorite football game of the year because it was the final game before baseball season begins. Now, the XFL had to go and ruin that for me, but it still represents the shift for me from football back to baseball. The commercials are always entertaining but they have gone downhill in recent years and since my Cowboys are doomed to forever fail in the divisional round, I don’t think I will be watching any meaningful Super Bowls any time soon.
At least I can take solace in the fact that the Houston Texans appear to have been struck by the same curse as Dallas and I enjoy watching Mahomes throw 70-yard dimes off his back foot while wearing a blindfold.
Reed Graff is the sports editor for the Snyder Daily News. Comments about his column may be sent to sports@snyderdailynews.com