1972
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VisitorNFC
HomeAFC
Visitor qtr 10
Home qtr 10
Visitor qtr 26
Home qtr 23
Visitor qtr 30
Home qtr 313
Visitor qtr 47
Home qtr 410
DateJanuary 23, 1972
StadiumLos Angeles Memorial Coliseum
CityLos Angeles, California
Visitor coachDick Nolan
Visitor coach teamSan Francisco 49ers
Home coachDon McCafferty
Home coach teamBaltimore Colts
MvpJan Stenerud
MvpteamKansas City Chiefs, K
Mvp 2Willie Lanier
Mvp2teamKansas City Chiefs, LB
RefereeBen Dreith
Attendance53,647
NetworkNBC
AnnouncersCurt Gowdy, Al DeRogatis

The 1972 Pro Bowl was the NFL's 22nd annual all-star game which featured the outstanding performers from the 1971 season. The game was played on January 23, 1972, at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in Los Angeles, California.[1][2] The final score was AFC 26, NFC 13.[3][4]

The Kansas City Chiefs swept the Most Valuable Player (MVP) awards, with placekicker Jan Stenerud named the game's offensive MVP and Willie Lanier selected as the defensive MVP.[5]

This was the last NFL game overall played with the hashmarks (also called the inbound lines) set at 40 feet apart (20 yards from the sidelines); the next season, they were brought in to 18½ feet, the width of the goalposts, where they still stand to this day.[6]

Attendance at the game was 53,647.[7] Don McCafferty of the Baltimore Colts coached the AFC while the NFC was led by the San Francisco 49ers' Dick Nolan.[8] The referee was Ben Dreith.[9]

AFC roster

Offense

PositionStarter(s)Reserve(s)
Quarterback12 Bob Griese, Miami16 Len Dawson, Kansas City
Running back44 Floyd Little, Denver36 Norm Bulaich, Baltimore
44 Leroy Kelly, Cleveland
Fullback39 Larry Csonka, Miami44 Marv Hubbard, Oakland
Wide receivers89 Otis Taylor, Kansas City
42 Paul Warfield, Miami
25 Fred Biletnikoff, Oakland
27 Gary Garrison, San Diego
Tight end87 Raymond Chester, Oakland89 Milt Morin, Cleveland
Offensive tackle77 Jim Tyrer, Kansas City
75 Winston Hill, N.Y. Jets
76 Bob Brown, Oakland
72 Bob Vogel, Baltimore
Offensive guard66 Larry Little, Miami
78 Walt Sweeney, San Diego
71 Ed Budde, Kansas City
Center50 Bill Curry, Baltimore00 Jim Otto, Oakland

Defense

PositionStarter(s)Reserve(s)
Defensive end65 Elvin Bethea, Houston
78 Bubba Smith, Baltimore
84 Bill Stanfill, Miami
Defensive tackle86 Buck Buchanan, Kansas City
75 Joe Greene, Pittsburgh
61 Curley Culp, Kansas City
Outside linebacker78 Bobby Bell, Kansas City
83 Ted Hendricks, Baltimore
34 Andy Russell, Pittsburgh
Inside linebacker63 Willie Lanier, Kansas City32 Mike Curtis, Baltimore
Cornerback24 Willie Brown, Oakland
18 Emmitt Thomas, Kansas City
20 Lemar Parrish, Cincinnati
Free safety21 Rick Volk, Baltimore13 Jake Scott, Miami
Strong safety29 Ken Houston, Houston20 Jerry Logan, Baltimore

Special teams

PositionStarter(s)Reserve(s)
Punter  44 Jerrel Wilson, Kansas City
Placekicker  3 Jan Stenerud, Kansas City
Kick returner22 Mercury Morris, Miami

NFC roster

Offense

PositionStarter(s)Reserve(s)
Quarterback12 Roger Staubach, Dallas11 Greg Landry, Detroit
Running back43 Larry Brown, Washington33 Willie Ellison, Los Angeles
22 Vic Washington, San Francisco
Fullback42 John Brockington, Green Bay36 Steve Owens, Detroit
Wide receivers45 Dick Gordon, Chicago
18 Gene Washington, San Francisco
27 Bob Grim, Minnesota
80 Roy Jefferson, Washington
Tight end88 Charlie Sanders, Detroit82 Ted Kwalick, San Francisco
Offensive tackle75 George Kunz, Atlanta
73 Ron Yary, Minnesota
70 Rayfield Wright, Dallas
Offensive guard68 Gale Gillingham, Green Bay
76 John Niland, Dallas
65 Tom Mack, Los Angeles
Center75 Forrest Blue, San Francisco54 Ed Flanagan, Detroit

Defense

PositionStarter(s)Reserve(s)
Defensive end86 Cedrick Hardman, Dallas
87 Claude Humphrey, Atlanta
81 Carl Eller, Minnesota
Defensive tackle74 Bob Lilly, San Francisco
88 Alan Page, Minnesota
74 Merlin Olsen, Los Angeles
Outside linebacker54 Chuck Howley, Dallas
64 Dave Wilcox, San Francisco
58 Isiah Robertson, Los Angeles
Inside linebacker51 Dick Butkus, Chicago53 Mike Lucci, Detroit
Cornerback37 Jimmy Johnson, San Francisco
44 Bruce Taylor, San Francisco
20 Mel Renfro, Dallas
22 Roger Wehrli, St. Louis
Free safety28 Bill Bradley, Philadelphia22 Paul Krause, Minnesota
Strong safety34 Cornell Green, Dallas20 Jerry Logan, Baltimore

Special teams

PositionStarter(s)Reserve(s)
Punter  10 Ron Widby, Dallas
Placekicker  5 Curt Knight, Washington
Kick returner45 Speedy Duncan, Washington

References

  1. ^ "The game to end all games: Griese, Staubach foes again". Pittsburgh Press. UPI. January 23, 1972. p. D1.
  2. ^ "Pro Bowl brings an end to the '1971' football campaign". Eugene Register-Guard. Associated Press. January 23, 1972. p. 3B.
  3. ^ "Stenerud, AFC kick NFC in Pro Bowl". Pittsburgh Press. UPI. January 24, 1972. p. 30.
  4. ^ "Stenerud answers critics by booting 4 FGs". Eugene Register-Guard. Associated Press. January 24, 1972. p. 5B.
  5. ^ "'Sten' treats NFC pros rudely, 26–13". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. AP. January 24, 1972. pp. 20, 23. Retrieved January 18, 2012.
  6. ^ "Owners give offense big seven-yard boost". Rome News-Tribune. Associated Press. March 24, 1972. p. 6A.
  7. ^ "NFL Pro Bowl history". CBSSports.com. Archived August 10, 2011 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved January 18, 2012.
  8. ^ "The 1972 Pro Bowl". Bolding Sports Research. Archived from the original on April 30, 2012. Retrieved January 18, 2012.
  9. ^ "1972 Pro Bowl game book" (PDF). NFL Game Statistics & Information. National Football League. Archived December 22, 2015 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved January 30, 2012.