Here are 11 of the best Super Bowl performances by Delaware football players

A couple dozen players with Delaware ties have been on Super Bowl teams.

Some have been super-duper, including an ex-Blue Hen who was game MVP, a former Delaware State star who snared the decisive reception and McKean and Caesar Rodney High graduates who made multiple Super Bowl appearances.

Others have done their jobs in an effort to nail down an NFL championship, with varying degrees of success. Some played limited roles or perhaps were on the roster or practice squad and inactive for the big game.

Sunday’s Super Bowl combatants, the Philadelphia Eagles and Kansas City Chiefs, won’t have any players with Delaware ties on the field. The Chiefs do have significant University of Delaware connections though as general manager Brett Veach, quarterbacks coach Matt Nagy and wide receivers coach Joey Bleymaier each played for the Blue Hens.

Before Super Bowl LVII arrives, we take a peek back at the 11 most notable performances in the previous 56 Super Bowls by players with Delaware ties.

11. Luke Petigout, Sussex Central High, New York Giants

Petitgout was a reliable starter at offensive tackle during eight seasons with the Giants and reached the Super Bowl his second season, though New York couldn’t cope with the Ravens’ sturdy defense in a 34-7 defeat.

10. Troy Reeder, Salesianum School/UD, Los Angeles Rams

Reeder started much of the 2021 season at linebacker for the Rams. Though the third-year undrafted free agent did not start in the Super Bowl, he was still on the field for one-third of the Rams’ defensive snaps plus served on most of their special teams in a 23-20 win over the Cincinnati Bengals.

9. Mike Adams, University of Delaware, Denver Broncos

The captain of Delaware’s 2003 NCAA title team, Adams beat the odds as an undrafted free agent by playing 16 seasons, 228 regular-season games and making two Pro Bowls. His one Super Bowl was a disappointing 43-8 loss to Seattle after the 2013 season. The safety did his part with six tackles while on the field for every defensive snap.

8. Steve Watson, St. Mark’s High, Denver Broncos

The Temple grad was a key player as a wideout on Denver teams that made five playoff appearances from 1979-87, including Super Bowl trips after 1986 and 1987. Neither turned out the way Watson wanted as the Broncos lost 39-20 to the Giants, despite his two catches for 54 yards, and 42-10 to Washington.

7. Rich Gannon, University of Delaware, Oakland Raiders

Gannon had a season to remember in 2002, when he was NFL MVP while throwing for a league-best 4,689 yards. But he’d like to forget much about Super Bowl XXXVII, a 48-21 loss to Tampa Bay in San Diego. Gannon was intercepted five times, the last three returned for touchdowns. One came with Oakland trying to erase a 27-3 third-quarter deficit. The last two were in the final 78 seconds after Gannon had rallied the Raiders to within 34-21.

6. Chris Godwin, Middletown High, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

The 2019 Pro Bowl pick had another big year in 2020, despite missing several games due to injury, after the Bucs’ signing of quarterback Tom Brady. The Super Bowl was actually his quietest game of the year statistically as Godwin had just two catches for nine yards but his blocking earned rave reviews as the Bucs rolled past the Chiefs 31-9.

5. Ben Patrick, University of Delaware, Arizona Cardinals

Patrick, who played one year at Delaware after transferring from Duke, has the distinction of catching a Super Bowl touchdown pass. The tight end’s 1-yard reception – his only one of the game − from Curt Warner allowed the Cardinals to take a 10-7 second-quarter lead over the Steelers. Pittsburgh eventually prevailed 27-23 on a touchdown with :35 left.

4. Duron Harmon, Caesar Rodney High, New England Patriots

The safety out of Rutgers played in four Super Bowls for the Patriots, starting two, and won three of them. Harmon had three tackles in the Patriots’ overtime comeback win over the Falcons after the 2016 season. A year later, Harmon’s interception thwarted an Eagles’ drive and led to a Patriots touchdown in the second quarter though Philadelphia prevailed 41-33.

3. John Taylor, Delaware State University, San Francisco 49ers

The unlikely Delaware State All-American won three Super Bowls for the 49ers and caught passes in each. But one stands out, as Taylor caught the winning 10-yard pass from Joe Montana with 34 seconds left to lift the 49ers past Cincinnati 20-16 in Super Bowl XXIII on Jan. 22, 1989, in Miami.

2. Randy White, McKean High, Dallas Cowboys

The Pro Football Hall of Fame defensive lineman’s 14-year career included 21 playoff games and back-to-back Super Bowl appearances in January of 1977 and 1978. The Cowboys won the first 27-10 over Denver. White and defensive end Harvey Martin were voted co-MVPs, as White had a key third-down sack and the two combined on a hit that forced an interception. Dallas lost 35-31 to Pittsburgh the next year.

1. Joe Flacco, University of Delaware, Baltimore Ravens

In the 13th postseason game of his stellar Ravens career, Flacco completed 22 of 33 passes for 287 yards and three touchdowns in a 34-31 win over the 49ers in New Orleans on Feb. 3, 2013, and was voted Super Bowl MVP. All three TD passes, the last a 56-yarder to Jacoby Jones, came in the first half as Baltimore built a 21-3 lead then held on.

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This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: Flacco, White, Taylor among Super Bowl heroes from Delaware