European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - January 29, 1991, Darmstadt, Hesse Page 22 a a a the stars and stripes tuesday january 29,1991super bowl xxv Long wait ends for backup hero by Jim litre a sports writer Tampa Fla. A for seven years lie was going nowhere and now Jeff Hostetler is going to Disneyland. Not As the new York giants map but As proof that dreams do indeed come True. A the looks frail but he is very Tough Quot teammate Mark Bavaro said admiringly. A very Strong and very n he has had to be that a resilient a above All. People with half Hostetler a Talent never learn How to be backups but he Learned to suffer in silence. He carried a clipboard instead of a grudge. He waited most of five Long seasons just for the Chance to throw his first regular season pass for the giants and his playing time in the two years since was Only a slight improvement. But when Phil Simms broke his foot Little More than a month ago Jeff Hostetler showed the world the virtue in patience. Just As he did sunday against the Buffalo Bills he beat Fate simply by outlasting it. A this Quot Hostetler said after completing 20 of 32 passes for 222 Yards and one of the two new York touchdowns a was Worth the wait. You want to get to the big game and not just show up but win it was somehow fitting that the the biggest night of his life like his professional career would mean surviving More bumps than a Well worn tire. Hostetler was taunted by buffaloes fans haunted by an inability to Cash in some important chips on new Yorkus Early drives and flattened a few times by the Bills punishing defensive front. But he never veered off the Road a a or went out of round. Jeff Hostetler kept picking himself up kept picking his teammates up and because of that they will All be picking up super bowl rings after beating the Bills 2019. A Buffalo has a great defense and they do things to rattle you a new York running Back Dave Meggett said. A and they wanted to rattle Jeff. But he kept control and did what he had to do. Especially on third Downs. He did a very Good Job to keep the drives he also killed a few single handed. With about 10 minutes left he tripped Over teammate Ottis Andersons feet while going Back from Center and got crunched by Bruce Smith for a safety late in the opening half. He was sufficiently intimidated on the following drive to throw his Only pass off the outstretched it arms of Leon seals. When the giants began their final drive of the opening half at their own 13-Yard line trailing 12-3 with 3 49 left he was bruised a Little bloodied and More than a Little tentative. And to make matters worse Simms was standing along the sideline reacting to several of Hostetler a previous incomplete passes by flipping a football into the air. He did no to say anything but his actions spoke louder than words probably could have. �?o1 think we just needed a Little time to get things in gear a Hostetler said afterwards and get a Good feel for what they were trying to do to us. Then we started attacking them at it. We opened it up a Little More As the game went on and. Things started to zip. Hostetler to Mark Bavaro for 6 Yards and one play later to Mark Ingram for 22. Then a Dave Meggett run and a drop by Maurice Carthon then right Back to Carthon for three More and a third-and-7 situation at the Buffalo 21. Zap. Seven Yards to 1 Loward Cross for the first. Two incompletion and another Simms flip later facing another third-and-10, Hostetler gunned a 14-Yard touchdown to Stephen Baker in the Corner. But Buffalo still owned a 1210 Lead at intermission. And if Hostetler a command of things did no to get steadier his dream of being hero would be folded faster than the Mickey mouse Castle erected for the halftime show. He did no to have to wait Long to find out. Four times in the opening drive of the third period he faced third Down and each time he responded with something different. A a in be heard so Many Guys say that id never be Able to do it and thank the lord a Hostetler said a a it a done and nobody can take it for seven Long seasons he mostly sat and waited and the closest he got to scoring was holding the Ball for Point after kicks. On this night though he could celebrate the fullness of playing and winning. In the locker room someone asked him whether it seemed like a fairy tale ending and Jeff Hostetler did no to so much As blink. A this a he said a is just Jeff Hostetler a its done and nobody can take it at a by the associated press super stars Ottis Anderson giants rushed for 102 Yards on 21 carries and scored a touchdown in new Yorkus 20-19 Victory. Anderson picked up four years ago As a backup to Joe Morris was selected the map. Jeff Hostetler giants was 20 for 32 for 222 Yards and one touchdown with interceptions. Thurman Thomas Bills led All rushers with 135 Yards on 15 carries including a 31-Yard to run on the first play of thet ourth Quarter. He also caught five passes for 55 Yards. Super sad buffaloes Scott Norwood was wide to the left on a 47-Yard Field goal attempt in the final seconds that would Nave won the game. The Odds were against him making the kick he Snow 1-for-6 lifetime on grass Fields from 40 Yards and longer. A stats new York kept buffaloes no huddle offence off the Field by controlling the Ball for 40 33, a super bowl record. The giants helped themselves by converting 9 of 16 third Down opportunities. Coaches made the difference editor s note a John Robinson has been head coach of the los Angeles rams for eight seasons and has won More games than anyone in the club s history. His nil record is 75-61, including six playoff appearances. He was 67-14-2 in seven seasons at the University of Southern California. In this Story written for the associated press he analyses the super bowl. By John Robinson for the associated press in a sure a lot of people will say that was the Best super bowl Ever and 1 agree. What an entertaining game. Its almost too bad it came Down to one last play and that Scott Norwood has to be pegged As the Goat of the game. It just did no to go through. The heroes of this game were Bill Par cells find his staff. That was clearly the Best coaching Job in be Ever seen. They took a team and maximized the talents it had and got the team to play the kind of game it needed to win. The coaches took a quarterback who had Little experience and got him to play three great games in the playoffs. They did no task him to do too much and allowed him to do the things he could like scrambling. I thought it got scary for them in second Quarter when it looked like buffaloes pass Rush was going to overrun Hostetler. But after giving up that safety the giants seemed to take control of game. I thought the giants drive late in the analysis second Quarter was the turning Point. They got some momentum Back and gave themselves they needed at that Battle Between buffaloes defensive line and new Yorkus offensive line was very important. Buffaloes Rush diminished As the game went wore the Bills Down. The giants offensive line has been a rising strength. It physically controlled us in a playoff game year but we were Able to make a few plays late and win. In the super bowl pfc teams have won with Strong offensive lines and that helped today. Buffaloes offence did not make much use of the Field. The Bills had to Settle for Short things in front of the defense. The giants went to two Down lineman As a Way to handle the four wide receivers and it worked. Bill Parcells has shown Over the years an ability to change some of his defensive concepts. The secondary denied the Long pass. The Bills wide receivers were not effective. A lot of times you saw Kelly in the pocket with a lot of time to throw but no one to throw to. In a sure the giants were tempted to bring their linebackers and put on pressure but they stayed with their plan. I thought the Bills played a Fine game Good enough to win most of the time. But they did no to capitalize on some things Thurman Thomas was fabulous a he is probably the Best Back in this league. At halftime i done to think the giants changed much. They just went Back to what they were doing. They went to the run in the second half. I thought they started to get away from that a Little in the first half but it seemed they were determined to run at the Bills in the second half. Vav i think the first series of the game was crucial. The giants needed to know they could Stop the Bills and they did a three Downs and out. Still the no huddle offence was effective for Buffalo late in the season and it was their Best Chance to win. I think Well probably see More of the no huddle in the nil in the future. I think it can be effective for teams in spurts but to do it All season would be difficult. Its hard to keep up that Pace. It was a great game to watch particularly because of the contrasting styles. It came Down to use of the clock. That show the giants won. It was a great team Victory
