Conference Title Game Notes

It will be the San Francisco 49ers, who are (5-0) in Super Bowls vs the Baltimore Ravens, who won in their only Super Bowl appearance, meeting for the NFL Title on February 3rd in New Orleans.

Each team coached by a Harbaugh brother (Jim with the 49ers and older brother John with the Ravens) lost a gut wrenching Conference title game last year but won this year.

This is only the second time since Conference title games began in 1970, that both of the previous year’s losing teams each won in the conference title games the following season.

The other time, ’94/’95 also involved Jim Harbaugh. In the 1995 AFC Title game, the Steelers beat quarterback Jim Harbaugh and the Indianapolis Colts. In the ’94 AFC Championship game the Pittsburgh Steelers had lost to the San Diego Chargers. The Steelers ’95 Super Bowl opponent, the Dallas Cowboys, had lost the ’94 NFC Championship game at San Francisco versus the ’49ers. In ’95, Dallas came back and beat the Green Bay Packers in the NFC Championship game.

Jim Harbaugh and the Colts had played gallantly as an underdog at Pittsburgh in the ’95 AFC Championship game. That defeat (the game ended when Harbaugh’s hail mary pass was ruled incomplete in a questionable decision) plus the one vs the Giants in overtime last year leaves Jim with one more tough title game loss than brother John. John’s Baltimore Ravens lost a heart breaker last year versus the New England Patriots.

Jim’s 49ers certainly had a tougher time winning last week, overcoming a (17-0) deficit and having to “hold off” (was there defensive holding by SF on the last key play?) the Atlanta Falcons while John’s Ravens scored 21 unanswered second half points to knockout the Patriots.

Each Harbaugh brother coached team trailed at the half, scored 28 points and held their home team opponent scoreless in the second half.

It is only the third time in 43 years of two conference title games that both road teams won. In 47 years of two games to determine the Super Bowl participants, it is the fourth time both road teams prevailed. Starting with the AFL’s first season in 1960, this is the fifth time in 53 years of two title games, that both road teams won. In a humorous note, it is the third time of the five that the year or season had a two as its last digit. The years are 1962, 1992, 2012, 1966 and 1997.