Prior to the big game in February, D Magazine released a Super Bowl special edition featuring a wonderful article titled "Super Bowl Memories." Several former Dallas Cowboys, as well a couple of Texas-born stars from other teams, recounted to Mickey Spagnola how the Super Bowl changed their lives. Beginning with Troy Aikman’s reflections, I hope you enjoy these as much as I did.

Troy Aikman
Dallas Cowboys, Super Bowls XXVII, XXVIII, XXX

In 1989, my first year, and the first year for Daryl [Johnston] and second year for Michael [Irvin], for us to be the worst team in football, winning one football game [ with a record of 1-15], it was very demoralizing to be on that football team. But then a few years later to be hoisting the Lombardi Trophy as the world champions was pretty special. 

People ask me all the time what was my favorite year, and [1992] was by far my favorite year. We didn’t know at the time how good we were. The year before we made it to the playoffs, we were 11-5, won in the wild-card round [beat Chicago] and lost in the divisional round against the Detroit Lions. So going into the ’92 season we thought we had a pretty good team, but we didn’t know how good we were. And I remember when we won the divisional game [Philadelphia] and went to San Francisco for the NFC Championship game, and I don’t know how the rest of the guys recalled it, but for me I just remember San Francisco was the veteran team.

They were the ones who had won Super Bowls. They were the ones who were expected to win, and we were the new kids on the block and not much was expected of us.

I hadn’t given a whole lot of thought about the ramifications of winning that game and then we would be playing in the Super Bowl. We just thought we’d go out and play the game and do the best we could and see what happened. And when all was said and done, we had beaten San Francisco [30-20], and we were all in shock. We were going out to Pasadena [Calif.] to play in the Super Bowl [XXVII]. It was a neat experience for me because we practiced in Los Angeles at UCLA, where I had spent my college years, and then we played the game at the Rose Bowl, where I had also played my college games. So there was a real comfort level for me. We’ve thought about the emotions that go into stepping out on the field the first time in a game of that magnitude, so it was a real comfortable thing for me.

I’m asked what I remember most about my career, and there was a moment in that game when I was running across the field, and I had my finger up in the air [after a touchdown pass]—it’s the only  time in my career I ever did that because I truly knew we were No. 1. But when we knew we had clinched the game [52-17], and to see all the smiles and celebrations that were taking place on the sidelines, and to think four years earlier we were the worst team in football and being laughed at and then being on top of the world as world champions, is a feeling I’ll never forget.

I think it’s opened up a lot of doors. Never really thought about it in that perspective. You finish it and you think it’s passed, but you really carry it with you.


Source: D Magazine Special Edition Super Bowl  |  Photography by Layne Murdoch

Part 2 of 12  Roger Staubach's Super Bowl Memories
Part 3 of 12  Super Bowl Memories of Michael Irvin
Part 4 of 12  Tony Dorsett’s Super Bowl Memories
Part 5 of 12  Super Bowl Memories of Daryl Johnston
Part 6 of 12  Ed “Too Tall” Jones’ Super Bowl Memories