1958 Pro Football Championship Overtime

From Wikipedia:

The 1958 National Football League Championship Game was played on December 28, 1958 at Yankee Stadium in New York City. It was the first ever National Football League (NFL) game to go into sudden death overtime. The final score was Baltimore Colts 23, New York Giants 17. The game has since become widely known as The Greatest Game Ever Played. The game was the 26th annual NFL championship game.

After the Giants scored first late in the first quarter with Pat Summerall's 36-yard field goal, a second quarter fumble by New York running back Frank Gifford set up a 2-yard touchdown run by Colts running back Alan Ameche. Gifford fumbled again later in the second quarter, and Baltimore converted that turnover into another touchdown with quarterback Johnny Unitas' 15-yard pass to end Raymond Berry to make the score 14-3 by halftime.

Then early in the third quarter, the Colts reached the New York 1-yard line. But on third down, Ameche was stopped for no gain, and the Colts turned it over on downs after Ameche was tackled at the 5-yard line on a fourth down halfback option play. The Giants then marched 95-yards, scoring on a 1 yard touchdown run by Mel Triplett to cut the score, 14-10.

The Giants then went ahead early in the fourth quarter with Gifford's 15-yard touchdown reception from quarterback Charlie Conerly. But with about two minutes left in the game, the Colts took over at their own 14-yard line and moved the ball all the way to the Giants 13-yard line to set up a 20-yard tying field goal by kicker Steve Myhra with seven seconds left to send the game into overtime—the first overtime game in NFL History. As Unitas later stated, the players had never heard of overtime before the game. "When the game ended in a tie, we were standing on the sidelines waiting to see what came next. All of a sudden, the officials came over and said, 'Send the captain out. We're going to flip a coin to see who will receive.' That was the first we heard of the overtime period."

In overtime, the Giants received the opening kickoff but were forced to punt. On their ensuing drive, the Colts drove 80 yards in 13 plays and scored on Ameche's 1-yard touchdown run to win the game, 23-17.

The game marked the beginning of the NFL's popularity surge, and eventual rise to the top of the United States sports market. A major reason was that the game was televised across the nation by NBC . Colts receiver Raymond Berry recorded 12 receptions for 178 yards and a touchdown. His 12 receptions are a championship record that stands to this day.

Category:

Sports

Tags:

• pro
• football
• Colts
• Giants
• overtime
• Alan
• Ameche
• radio

[PurpleMalita44]

that's why, in parentheses on the Hall of Fame website

(Baltimore Colts)

our city has every right to those players, those games, and that history as much, if not more than Indy fans do

[RatedRDefense52]

Tom Matte Baltimore Colts RB: "I am not an Indianapolis Colt, I am a Baltimore Colt, I don't want to be a part of that history because I never played in that town" and that is echoed by other Baltimore Colts Hall of Famers, including the late, great Johnny Unitas

[ecca666]

I will never tire of hearing the call "Unitas to Berry"

Baltimore Colt for life.

[dcbandnerd]

@flyers4a Yes, it was. He was the PA announcer for both the Giants and the Yankees for decades.

[altfactor]

Prior to this game, the NFL was considered the "baby brother" of the "big four" pro sports.

Baseball was by far the biggest, hockey and basketball were well back in popularity, and the NFL was "back of the pack".

Within a decade, the NFL leaped from #4 to #1 among the "big four" pro team sports in terms of popularity.

[bitterbonker]

This is the broadcast by Joe Boland and Bill McColgan. I have a complete broadcast of this game, complete with commercials. And yes, that's Bob Sheppard on the PA.

[flyers4a]

Is that Bob Sheppard's voice on the PA system heard in the background?

[m1049]

That fan running out on the field was a TV executive trying to delay the game because they had lost their connection!

[Boelcke1916]

The Colts belong back in Baltimore.

[BH21206]

Definitely and categorically not Chuck Thompsom's voice.