The Super Bowl is one of the most watched sporting events in the world. While many teams have had the opportunity to compete for the biggest prize in football, and even win the prize on more than one occasion, others have not been as successful. For some teams, Super Bowl success has not come in decades. This is the case with the Kansas City Chiefs.
The Chiefs have gone half a century without reaching a Super Bowl. However, that all changed Sunday, Jan. 19. The Chiefs defeated the Tennessee Titans in the AFC Championship game to earn their first Super Bowl birth in 50 years.
“We’ve dealt with a lot of heartbreak in the last five or six years because the Chiefs go and make it to the playoffs, but they don’t make it all the way and they don’t get to go to the Super Bowl,” sophomore Chris Farlow said. “But this year, we battled some adversity and it just means a lot knowing how hard we fought and how dedicated we are to this team.”
While watching a sports event on TV can be entertaining, the conditions are different compared to going and witnessing the event in person. The ambiance and certainly the volume is drastically different in a stadium full of fans when compared to a television. Sophomore Caleb Kootz was able to experience the game firsthand, loudness and all.
“The energy of the stadium was just so positive even when we were down 10 to nothing,” Koontz said. “We all knew that the Chiefs were going to pull out the win.”
The Titans took an early lead and were up 10 to nothing in the early first quarter. The quarter ended 10-7 in favor of the Titans. However, during the second quarter the Chiefs responded by outscoring the Titans 7-14 and having the advantage at halftime with the score in their favor at 21-17. The Chiefs were closing out the Titan’s running game offense by not allowing the Titan’s most effective offensive player, Derrick Henry, advance.
“I knew they had Derrick Henry, he could just run it up the middle,” Farlow said. “But I knew that we had players like Tyron Matthew and Frank Clark that could try and stop him.”
The Chiefs did just that and managed to defeat the Titans 35-24 and secure a spot at the Super Bowl. The Chiefs will face the San Francisco 49ers in Miami, Florida on Sunday, Feb. 2. Farlow believes the Chiefs will have to be at their best when facing the 49ers.
“It’s going to take our offense to be precise because they have a great defense and Richard Sherman is a great corner,” Farlow said.
However, Chiefs fans all around the state hope to see their first Super Bowl in half a century. Some, already preparing for the win.
“I don’t know what I would do,” Koontz said. “I already bought Chiefs Super Bowl gear!”