By Darin January 30 in Football History: Super Bowl Miracles and Draft Legends
From the birth of football in the Deep South to the most dramatic goal-line tackle in Super Bowl history, January 30th is a day of destiny on the gridiron. This date has witnessed three of the most iconic Super Bowls ever played—including the Rams’ “One Yard Short” victory and John Riggins’ legendary fourth-down gallop. Beyond the championship stage, this day marks the beginning of the University of Georgia’s football legacy in 1892 and the entry of the Oakland Raiders into the AFL. Whether you are reliving the 1968 draft that built a dynasty or celebrating the birth of Hall of Famer Bump Elliott, January 30th delivers a relentless timeline of football greatness.
American Football History Timeline of January 30
- January 30, 1892 – Athens, Georgia – The University of Georgia played its first football game in Athens against Mercer University. According to an interesting post on the UGA.edu website, the Bulldogs started their first gridiron campaign with Chemistry Professor, Dr. Charles Holmes Herty, who organized not Georgia’s first football team but the first in the deep South of America. In this first game, the Bulldogs pummelled Mercer 50-0. Their schedule for that first season consisted of only one other game, on February 20 against Auburn. We will cover that one more in detail in the upcoming February 20 Football History Headlines. An interesting story that comes from the article tells that in this first game on the athletics fields (now known as Herty Field), some reports indicate that the official scorer for the game missed at least one touchdown when he walked to the city alcohol dispensary on Broad St. across from the campus to purchase a bottle of whiskey during the game. With a 50-point differential, the players from Mercer may have wished they had joined him!
- On January 30, 1960, the Oakland Raiders entered the American Football League, according to Raiders.com. The Oakland group was awarded the former Minneapolis-St. The Paul franchise was basically abandoned when the NFL granted permission for the Minnesota Vikings franchise to form before the AFL could step in.
- On January 30, 1968, Ron Yary from USC was the first overall pick by the Minnesota Vikings in the 1968 NFL Draft. Yary was an excellent pick as he made it into the Hall of Fame! According to the Pro Football Reference website, the other future Pro Football Hall of Famers from this class so far include Claude Humphrey, Larry Csonka, Curly Culp, Ken Stabler, Charlie Sanders, Elvin Bethea, and Art Shell. The Raiders had a banner day building the core of their offense of the 1970’s with the picks of Shell and Stabler!
- On January 30, 1973, the team’s front offices assembled in New York for the 1973 NFL Draft. John Matuszak from the University of Tampa was the first overall pick by the Houston Oilers. The Pro Football Reference data shows that Hall of Famers from this class with busts in Canton are John Hannah, Ray Guy, and Joe DeLamielleure.
- January 30, 1983 – Rose Bowl, Pasadena, California – Super Bowl XVII was a rematch of Super Bowl VII, which was also played in the LA area, as it pitted the 8-1 Washington Redskins against the Miami Dolphins, who spotted a record of 7-2 in the strike-shortened NFL season. The American Football Database provides the game details in its excellent article. The Dolphins held a 17-10 lead at the half with a Fulton Walker 98-yard touchdown return of a kickoff and Jimmy Cefalo’s 76-yard TD reception. The turning point in the game came with 10:10 left in the fourth quarter. Washington was facing a fourth down and 1-yard to go situation at the Dolphins’ 43-yard line, and they were still trailing 17-13. That’s when Washington’s veteran running back John Riggins broke through the Dolphin defense and ran all the way to paydirt to take the lead. D.C. Wide receiver Charlie Brown then added an insurance touchdown with his 6-yard scoring catch, and the Washington Redskins outlasted the Miami Dolphins, 27-17. Riggins, with his power running, earned the game’s MVP award.
- January 30, 1994 – Georgia Dome, Atlanta – The Buffalo Bills played in their fourth straight Super Bowl, Super Bowl XXVIII, against the powerful Dallas Cowboys. Things looked promising for the Bills in the first half as they held a 13-6 lead in the locker room. The third quarter, though, things started to unravel according to the statmuse.com website article on the game. Cowboys defender James Washington picked up a 3rd quarter Bill fumble and rambled 48 yards for a score to tie the game. It was then more stifling defense and a heavy dose of running back Emmitt Smith, who scored twice in the second half, leading the Dallas Cowboys to a 30-13 win over the Buffalo Bills. The game’s MVP was Emmitt Smith, who, besides his two late TDs, added 132 hard-earned yards on the ground.
- January 30, 2000 – Georgia Dome, Atlanta – Who can forget the suspense of the very last play of Super Bowl XXXIV? The St. Louis Rams were up by seven, but Steve McNair had marched the Tennessee Titans most of the length of the field to the Rams’ ten-yard line with 6 seconds on the clock and no timeouts remaining! A Bleacher Report article reminds us of the rest: as DB Mike Jones was covering Titan tight end Frank Wycheck on the play near the goal line, an open Kevin Dyson caught the pass from McNair. Jones left his coverage when the ball was passed and tackled Dyson at his legs, leaving the receiver to stretch for the goal line. As the play happened, everybody watching was on the edge of their seats, and then Dyson’s shoulder touched the ground…the ball was short of the line! The Rams win in the most dramatic of endings over Tennessee, 23-16. St. Louis Quarterback Kurt Warner won the Most Valuable Player award after he threw for 414 yards and two scores in the game. At the time, this game had the fifth-highest viewership in television history, with over 130.7 million people watching.
- On January 30, 2011, the NFL Pro Bowl was played once again at beautiful Aloha Stadium in Honolulu. The game ended with the NFC outscoring the AFC, 55-41. Washington Redskins defensive back DeAngelo Hall was given the MVP.
January 30 Football Hall of Fame Birthday
- Bump Elliott
Conclusion
The volume of football history packed into January 30 is genuinely staggering. From the humors of 1892, where a scorekeeper missed touchdowns for whiskey, to the intense professional rivalries that defined the Super Bowl era, this date showcases the sport’s evolution. We celebrate the tactical brilliance of George Halas, the grit of John Riggins, and the “One Yard Short” drama of Super Bowl XXXIV. As dynasties like the 1990s Cowboys were cemented and the 1968 draft class changed the trajectory of multiple franchises, January 30th remains a definitive cornerstone of the football calendar.
