The Oakland Raiders had been to the postseason four previous times. The phrase was apparently meant to imply that the play was miraculous in nature (see Hail Mary pass for a similar term).īackground Playoff history Cope used the term on television and the phrase stuck. A Pittsburgh woman, Sharon Levosky, called Cope before his 11 PM sports broadcast on the 23rd and suggested the name, which was coined by her friend Michael Ord. The phrase was first used on air by Myron Cope, a Pittsburgh sportscaster who was reporting on the Steelers' victory. The play's name is a pun derived from the Immaculate Conception, a dogma in the Catholic Church. The play was a turning point for the Steelers, who reversed four decades of futility with their first playoff win ever, and went on to win four Super Bowls by the end of the 1970s. The play was also selected as the Greatest Play in NFL History in the NFL Network's 100 series. NFL Films has chosen it as the greatest play of all time, as well as the most controversial. Kevin Cook's The Last Headbangers cites the play as the beginning of a bitter rivalry between Pittsburgh and Oakland that fueled a historically brutal Raiders team during the NFL's most controversially physical era. The play has been a source of unresolved controversy and speculation ever since, as many people have contended that the ball only touched Fuqua or that it hit the ground before Harris caught it, either of which would have resulted in an incomplete pass by the rules at the time. The ball either bounced off the helmet of Raiders safety Jack Tatum or off the hands of Fuqua, and, as it fell, Steelers fullback Franco Harris caught it just before it could hit the ground and ran for a game-winning touchdown. With the Steelers trailing in the last 30 seconds of the game, Pittsburgh quarterback Terry Bradshaw threw a pass attempt to John Fuqua. It occurred in the AFC divisional playoff game of the National Football League (NFL), between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Oakland Raiders at Three Rivers Stadium in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on December 23, 1972. The Immaculate Reception is one of the most famous plays in the history of American football.
Steelers: Mel Blount, Terry Bradshaw, Joe Greene, Jack Ham, Franco Harris, Chuck Noll, Bill Nunn, Art Rooney, Dan Rooney Raiders: George Blanda, Willie Brown, Fred Biletnikoff, Bob Brown, Al Davis, Jim Otto, John Madden, Art Shell, Ken Stabler, Gene Upshaw, Ron Wolf Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Three Rivers Stadium, the site of the game.
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