- African American Head Coach, Youngest Ever, and MVP Takes Top Honors -

(BLACK PR WIRE) (February 3, 2009) Black History 2009 continues to kick off with unprecedented firsts by African Americans. From the White House to the Super Bowl, people of color are proving time and again that all things are possible and dreams can and will come true! This dynamic statement was brought to the forefront of the world by way of the Pittsburgh Steelers, one of the National Football League’s stellar franchises and their quest for an unmatched sixth Super Bowl Championship title against the Arizona Cardinals.

The Steelers were trailing 23-20 with two minutes and 24 seconds left in the fourth quarter of Super Bowl XLIII. Many fans in the Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida knew that there was too much time left before the game could be decided.

Led by fifth year Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, the Steelers put together one of the best fourth quarter scoring drives in Super Bowl history by going the length of the field to put themselves in the position for Roethlisberger to throw the game-winning touchdown to wide receiver Santonio Holmes with only 35 seconds left in the game. Holmes finished the game with nine catches for 131 yards and was selected as the game’s most valuable player (MVP) for his impressive play.

In addition to the Steelers winning the game and becoming the only team in NFL history to win six Super Bowl trophies, Head Coach Mike Tomlin became the youngest NFL coach at age 36 to win a title. Tomlin also became the third African-American head coach to be in the championship game and the second black coach to capture a title. The first was Indianapolis Colts head coach Tony Dungy, whose team defeated Lovie Smith’s Chicago Bears in the 2007 Super Bowl, held in Miami. Both coaches in that game were the first two African-American coaches to compete for a title.
Black PR Wire salutes the NFL Super Bowl champions for making 2009 Black history defining moments.
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