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A History of Bulls in the Super Bowl
1/31/2021 11:06:00 AM | Football
The first Bull to win a ring was Gerry Philbin. The former UB All-American was the New York Jets starting defensive end in Super Bowl III, the game Joe Namath famously guaranteed New York would win. Philbin had two tackles against the Colts to help the Jets win their one and only Super Bowl title.
It wouldn't be for another 42 years that another UB player would start in the Super Bowl. After being drafted in the sixth round of the 2010 NFL Draft by the Green Bay Packers, James Starks had some injury setbacks that would keep the rookie from seeing his first game action until early December. However, the Niagara Falls native played a big role in the Packers' march to the Super Bowl.
In Green Bay's wildcard round win over Philadelphia, Starks rushed for 123 yards, a Packers' rookie playoff record. After rushing for 66 yards in the Divisional round against the Falcons, Starks scored his first career touchdown against the Chicago Bears in the NFC Championship Game to go along with 74 rushing yards.
Starks earned the starting nod in Super Bowl XLV against the Pittsburgh Steelers. He had 11 carries for 52 yards. His 12th carry was that of the Lombardi Trophy as the Packers defeated the Steelers, 31-25, to win their fourth title in franchise history.
In 2009, the Indianapolis Colts sent a pair of Bulls to the Super Bowl. Jamey Richard was in his second season with the Colts. Drafted in the seventh round by Indianapolis in 2008, and the team's starting center for most of his rookie season, Richard was a member of the special teams unit in 2009 when the Colts lost to the Saints in Super Bowl XLIV.
Richard's teammate at UB, quarterback Drew Willy was signed by Indianapolis late in that 2008 season and was briefly on the active roster before being assigned to the practice squad. And while he didn't suit up for the game, he was still with the team when they traveled to Miami.
While not every UB player has been on the active roster it doesn't mean they haven't played a role in the success of a team during a Super Bowl run. Former All-MAC defensive end Steven Means is a perfect example of this.
Means was in his third season as a reserve defense end with the Philadelphia Eagles in 2017. Since the Eagles had a very deep defensive end unit, Means was inactive for much of the season. Undeterred, his work ethic and practice prowess became that of legend. In fact, story has it that Eagles Pro Bowl tackle Lane Johnson was so appreciative of how hard Means made him practice, that when the Eagles won Super Bowl LII, Johnson gave Means his Super Bowl bonus check.
Gemara Williams got the call late, but was with the New England Patriots for Super Bowl XLII in 2008. The former UB defensive back had spent the previous season on the Patriots' injured reserve list and was released from New England's practice squad in late September of 2007. However, on January 16, 2008, just four days before the AFC Championship Game, Williams was resigned to the Patriots' practice squad and was with the team through the Super Bowl that season, a game New England lost to the New York Giants to have its perfect season spoiled.
All told, teams with former UB Bulls on the roster are 4-2 in Super Bowl games. Harris will look to add to that win total when the Kansas City Chiefs face the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Super Bowl LV next Sunday.
