The best oh my for me as a Steelers fan isnt even for the Steelers. It was the Afc title fumble by Earnest Bynar for the Browns. No super bowl for you! Oh My!
I think I've had enough of Tony Romo! He sucked and always will be biased against the Steelers...it's an, "OLD TRADITION" So knowing we love to hate the Cowboys.. Why have him as an analyst at our games!
Men were men in those days. They didn't play with the restrictions they are under now. Now you got wusses who won't play theilast college games because they're afraid they might get hurt and ruin their NFL careers. Hey son you signed up for that possibility the day you decided to suit up. You think you're going to avoid an injury by not playing your last college game but you'll be immune to injury once you get in the NFL? 😂 Point of that is ManUp and Suit Up and all of the overcausious pussies needs to SHUT UP!
@@axer3515 , no way should that detract from his tremendous contribution to the Steelers'success, EVER. His teammates benefitted from his presence as much as the reverse. That's what made them as great as they were.
Earl Cambell was probably my ALL TIME favorite Running back...Cambell/Harris. SMASHMOUTH FOOTBALL...Steelers/Oilers..late 70s..great rivalry..in the Old AFC-Central..
I still tell our Pgh Defense to play ,"SMASHMOUTH!", IM SICK TO DEATH OF SEEING #90, TJ WATT GET HELD AND MUCH WORSE ON EVERY DOWN AND WHY R REFS U KNOOW SEE IT ON EVERY DOWN DONT CALL IT ON THE OTHER TEAMS BUT THEY DO ON US!
You said it! I was an Oilers fan and 10 years old when this game was played. I’ve lost the love for the NFL these days, with all the political BS, and now the “flu” drama. I’m thinking it would be fun to start having playoff and Super Bowl parties and letting the guests know, “You’ll be watching games from the 70’s”😂
@@frauddetector6129 My friend what an OUTSTANDING IDEA!! I know some friends that literally love to watch one of those games with commercials and Leslie Visser and Brent halftime show. Couldnt agree more about todays game, I really only watch my Steelers . Today is like a damn soap opera football with the social media teenager crappola. I could go in here forever, but no , not worth it. Thank you again Sir youre comments are spot on. Steelers/ Oiler games especially when Campbell showed up in 77 wow.Oiler defense: Larry Brazille, Curly Culp and Mike Webster titanic battles on the nose. Elvin Bethea DE vs Jin Kolb on the end just dont see that pure football anymore .WR Burroughs no 00 vs Mel Blount etc. Ill stop now, Im depressing myself.Again thank you
Ya buddy. Born 1968. Folks are from Brownsville. Moved up 30 miles east of Cleveland after Dad got out of the Corp. Great football memories. Thx for the comments gentleman. We all seem to agree. ✌️
Yeah I was 14 when they won superbowl 14 ,I've been a steelers fan forever and miss the steel curtain days ,white ,Green ,greenwood, Holmes and lambert,ham, blount,shell man those where the days couldn't wait for Sundays to see the steelers
I'm so glad that I got to watch this style of football in my late teens...todays game is just a poor imitation of this great example of sport....these were me , not over pampered crybabies that have to mug for the camera after every play....this was great entertainment at the time..just the best....
You know, it IS possible to appreciate "the way it was," WITHOUT the trite comparisons to the way things are now. I miss 1979, too, and I would love to revisit those days every NFL season, but they are never coming back. Get with the times and move forward, or stay stuck and get left behind.
@@shannonrhett3304 It's possible but not easy; it's far easier to just give up the "pro" game and get your fix watching these or watching college ball. Football's always been a diversion, not a necessity.
@@indy_go_blue6048 , separating one era from another is only as difficult as one chooses to make it it for one's self. I've always preferred pro football over college football; especially now with so many one-sided matchups in today's collegiate games. I lose interest in a game such as last week's Ohio State-Michigan State game early on once I sense it's becoming a runaway. Plus, there's no one in the college game I feel I just have to see. No one stands out to me the way Herschel Walker, Doug Flutie and several others did when I was much younger, and age is a big part of that for me. I find it nearly as hard to identify with current NFL players, but being a faithful Steeler fan makes it easier. I follow several college teams, including Ohio State and Michigan State, but I couldn't name more than one player between the two.
@@shannonrhett3304 Who says we have to appreciate everything in the current culture? Should we all listen to Ariana Grande and rap music just so we can "get with the times"? lol. What might put us "behind" would be stuff like no internet connection, no electricity, treating diseases with leaches, etc. But today's entertainment isn't a "modern" necessity.
I'll never forget this game! My household was torn, because we loved Bradshaw, being from our hometown. My brother played with him and against him in High school and went to La. Tech with him. However, we had family who lived in Houston which was only a few hours away. The "no touchdown" by Renfro was one of my first memories of NFL football. I remember how bad we felt for Renfro. Tough way to lose
Thanks Steeler fan from an old Oiler fan. I still can't bring myself to cheer for the Texans. Our rivalry in the late 70's was unparalleled and was the most fun I had as a fan of the NFL. B-T-W, Renfro's catch was a TD. Too bad there wasn't instant replay back then. I'm also not saying Oilers beat Steelers even with that TD but it sure would have changed the complexion of the game and given the Oilers momentum.
@Craig Willis I agree!! I'm was born and raised in Houston and when Oilers relocate to Nashville Bud Adams retired the nickname so that the new Houston team couldn't use it!!! He was so stupid!! But check this out when Houston was rewarded a team in 1998 a name the team contest was held for the fans!! The top 3 nicknames that were chosen were Stallions, Texans and Apollos!! The dam owner at the time Bob McNair, rest his soul, choose Texans!! If he had let the dam fans chose the name Apollos would have won!! Anddddddd the fans chose purple and black as the team new colors; but because the name Texans was chosen the team wore the state flag colors!! And check this out, the name Texans was already used by the Dallas franchise before they relocated to Kansas City and became the Chiefs!! He asked the Kansas City Chiefs owner, Lamar Hunt, if he could use the nickname and the owner told him, "You didn't even have to ask!!" Houston we drop the ball on that one!! We are the only NFL team that was born in the 21 century and the Texans was the best dam nickname we could come up with!! Butttttttt we have the first retractable roof stadium in NFL history!!
Grew up huge steelers fan. whats amazing to watch this is that i only started watching as a kid in early 80's. so seeing this is amazing because i know i would have been glued to the tv. its amazing to know what you would've been doing before you were born. thank you so much for posting!!!!!!!!!!!!
I watched this game and also the NFC Championship game that followed. During the 1979/80 season I was 10 years old and just getting into watching sports seriously, so it was great to relive those days. The Rams also had a touchdown taken away by the referees. The difference obviously being the outcome wasn't affected as the Rams beat Tampa Bay. How many games were affected by calls that replay would have corrected? That being said, what a great time for football. It was a gargantuan effort by the Steelers to keep the great Earl Campbell in check. Great that war hero Rocky Bleier scored the clincher. And the announcing team of Dick Enberg and Merlin Olsen is one of the great pairings of all time.
My late wife and I were in a temporary separation and I was renting a room from an 83 year old lady who knew nothing about football but was kind enough to let me watch the POs. I spent 2/3 of the game explaining to her what was going on, lol.
I was 7 and this was the first season I remember. I became a Dolphins fan but was pulling for Houston in this one. It was games like this and the Dolphins/Chargers Epic in Miami game in 81 that made me a lifetime fan of the NFL. Well till recently. But I still pull for the Dolphins and watch their games.
@@clanshepard Pat Summerall and John Madden are the greatest NFL broadcasting duo whether on CBS or FOX while dick Enberg and Merlin Olsen at NBC are a close second
Thanks for posting. Wonderful memories as a kid. I never stopped loving the Oilers as they broke my heart every year until moving to Nashville. Love ya blue!
Those were the best uniforms in the league by far. The Houston Texans tried buying the Oilers naming rights, so they can rebirth the Oilers in their home in Houston but, Bud Adams emphatically said hell no.. He was still angry with the city for failing to build a new stadium..
Steelers fan here. I had much respect for the Oilers, Earl Campbell and Bum Phillips. If it wasn't for the Steelers, people would still be talking about the Oilers dynasty. And I loved it when Steelers fans pounded the man trying to take Bum's hat!
I will add that I was 8 years old in January of 80' as well. This was the first playoff game that I was passionately following. The Steelers were so exciting to root for (unless you were an Oilers fan).
Did anybody notice the Michelob commercial at 42:15 showing a young 23 year old Richard Karn (Al from Tim Allen's - Home Improvement) celebrating meeting "The Woman"...I knew he looked familiar! :o)
Thanks so much for posting this and leaving the local bonus footage at the end! Being a lifelong Steeler fan from Central NY we never got to see the local stuff, so thanks!
Very very business professional like team. No hot dogs or individuals. Just a hard core hard hitting all about business approach. The way the late chuck Noll wanted it.
Remember this game was played in Three Rivers Stadium on artificial turf, so can you imagine how the players felt every time they were hit both others and the ground which is nothing more than concrete. Concrete hardens when it becomes cold, and this was the long before the days when the NFL used field turf. Talk about concussions...
The 1970's and 1980's was an era of a bunch of crappy multi-use football/baseball stadiums with artificial turf. Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, Cincinnati, St. Louis were the worst. The outdoor multi-use stadiums on grass or domes weren't much better either. I want to say that the Baltimore Orioles building Camden Yards in the 1990's is were all of that started to change.
@@indy_go_blue6048 Didn't OBJ tear his ACL in back to back seasons(2020 at Cincinnati and in 2021 at Super Bowl LVII....both non contact injuries)on Field Turf ?
Seeing Mike Webster in the post game interview was heartbreaking..he was so eloquent and together at this time and a few short years later he was living in his car suffering from dementia brought on by his years of success at football.....a friend of mines ex husband was his last doctor in Wheeling W..Virginia and told me of a story when he was at their house playing with their kids, to them he was just Mike, one of their dads patients..the kids had no idea of who he was and the success that he enjoyed a few years earlier....a real tragic ending....
Yet today, I see a lot of posts from fans who yearn for the "good old days" of old-school, smashmouth football. I remind them of Jim Plunkett, Junior Seau and Tim Fox, how much suffering they went through. Seau is dead, the others nearly so. They don't care.
@@davidlafleche1142 the guy thg s of that era should of gotten paid what the guys of this era are getting and todays guys are worth what those guys got paid....that era was brutal, but it was amazing to watch....even then there were only a few teams willing to play that style of ball, and Pittsburgh was one of them....I still watch, but it's no fun....its a business selling a vastly watered down product that people are willing to pay for
@@davidlafleche1142 Prior to 1970 one very rarely heard of concussions and CTE in the earlier players. I firmly believe that the advent of artificial turf, esp. that shit used in the '70s is more responsible for brain damage than any number of hits. JMHO.
@@indy_go_blue6048 The only athlete who got any attention for that was Jerry Quarry: a tough son of a gun who could take a beating, but could not win the title. During that time, other pro sports (especially baseball and football) were notorious for threatening injured players. Nobody dared admit an injury (especially not a concussion), for fear of losing their roster spot. "I took the most expensive aspirin in history." (Wally Pipp)
BTW, in many ways this might have been the best Steelers team of all their SB teams. I mean when you go 12-4 and finish the year 1st in total offensive yards gains and (really) 1st in yards allowed (technically the Bucs allowed even fewer, but their schedule was super weak compared to Pittsburgh’s) despite giving up 52 turnovers and going -10 in the overall plus/minus ratio you are *ridiculously* talented.
In my mind Houston and Indy are synonymous. If the Steelers and/or Patriots hadn't been around we'd both have a couple of SB rings more than we have. Tough being 2cd best.
@@indy_go_blue6048 a better way to look at it... indy & houston (& oakland imo) produced many tough, epic AFC CGs vs. dynasties... often better/tougher games than the SB itself. as a football fan (pre-Goodell), i appreciate these old playoff games more than the SBs, and certainly more than any 'football' being broadcast on sundays nowadays.
Love these old games . Thanks for loading. Crazy how Vernon Perry picked off Fouts the week prior then gets a pick 6 on the first series this game . Not enough to beat the Steelers though.
1:42:25 - Willie "Pops" Stargell! Remember the "Family" Pirates? Coming off a World Series title just two months before this game when they overcame a 3-1 deficit against Baltimore? The Cuban caps they wore and had players like Parker, Ott, Garner, Candelaria, Blyleven, Moreno and Tekulve?
i'm a Raider fan and for the life of me can't understand why when Houston was given back to the NFL they didn't name the team oilers with these same uni's?
I guess Bud Adams wouldn't give up the name...and the name Texans was already used before in Dallas by both the NFL & the AFL....and the Titans was the previous name of the AFL NY Jets....bizarre
In Cleveland, the fans fought to keep the name, and the history. I just looked u p the standings for 1979, and the NFL site lists the Tenn Titans instead of the oilers. smh
Also credit NBC producer George Finkel and director Ted Nathanson for capturing the replay shot of Renfro of the non-touchdown - the officials and the decision by referee Jim Tunney accurately didn't see it because they were out of position; however, Bum Phillips' son Wade Phillips (who was one of the assistant coaches of the Oilers and was in the coach's box), saw and heard it 2:08:21
We could not see if he had possession of the ball. Although, it looks like he did. This is a lot like a hockey goal when the puck cannot be seen across the line, but it is obvious it was.
@@SteveAustin. Charlie and Don were both play be play. They were never paired together. Len Dawson and Charlie Jones were a great tandem. Don Criqui and Bob Trumpy was the #2 team behind Enberg and Olsen during those years
I was 9 years old. I loved this old school football. My Chiefs were horrible...lol but watching these types of games with Dick Enberg and Merlin Olsen were the best and better than today’s announcers.
I’m a Raiders Fan growing Up Here in Altoona PA..But I was 6/7 & a Steelers fan then cause My Dad & older brother was & whn Ur tht Little U fallow Ur parents.. But Anyway watching these old Steelers teams from the 70s WOW THEY DIDNT WEAK SPOT ON TEAM EXCEPT IN KICKING GAME.. But they were 2/3 deep in each Position.!!!
@@indy_go_blue6048 I loved the "Sack Exchange" but yes, he used tick alot of people off. I think I remember Billy Johnson's end zone dance preceding Gastineau.
@@johnnypastrana6727 from your vast years of officiating experience? Pretty easy to see on TV. Not so much at field level at full speed. FYI, we did land on the moon, and Elvis is dead.
@@johnolek4143 I am a Steelers fan and yes,,,the Oilers had a touchdown clear as day. This game was the game that broke the Houston Oiler owners heart forever. I always liked Ray Childress and Earl Campbell. I always wished those two would of had a chance to get a ring for their class act and being such hard workers on the football field.
@@docwho10th88 I'm not arguing it was a touchdown. Just saying it was a bang bang play in the very back of the end zone. It isn't easy to tell when watching at full speed. Would be even tougher to see at ground level. I'm not bashing anyone, just an observation. I'm a Steelers fan, and have seen some real stinker calls go for and against them. Sucks, but it didn't decide the game, as some calls have.
I thought it was an amazing catch even at first glance. Of course I'm seeing it from the comforts of my couch, but the fact he raised his arm immediately afterwards should have been enough for the refs - and would have created an immortal NFL films clip!
@Louie D That's what I remember too... But it was the Rams' fans that I heard all Monday morning doing the angry whining. They really didn't want their Rams to face the Steelers in the SB. I wonder why....
Chuck noll was a calm reflective man of some intellect, to say he seemed to have no personality is a silty thing to say - and I'm a hardcore Raider fan,
Everybody remembers this game as the Mike Renfro game, how Renfro and the Oilers were robbed of a game-tying TD. But nobody remembers that the Steelers spotted the Oilers 7-0 and 10-3 leads, and still came back to win the game. And how about the Steelers on that 3rd and 20 in the fourth quarter? Lynn Swann sliding and catching the pass right at the first down mark. Matt Bahr hitting the FG in poor weather conditions.Donnie Shell recovering that fumble. And Rocky Bleier on that final drive. Were those last two drives by the Steelers cheating? Looked like two championship drives to me. Great poise and execution.
James Tressler ......exactly James.....even if Renfro makes that catch the final is 27-20 at best....no way Houston was winning even if that catch stood
@@frasierthebichon7422 You have no way of knowing that. That would've tied the score (assuming the point after was good) and then what? BTW, Renfro DID make the catch.
Not only that but Renfro took a dive earlier on that drive to draw a bad PI against Blount. Also, the reverse angle was never shown. Renfro juggled the ball as his 1st foot was leaving the turf.
42 Years later & I still say the Oilers Got Hosed by the Crooked Refs in this Game!.....Renfro Scored that Touchdown! (there were multiple bad calls in this game)
The commercials do add to the nostalgic quality of this old recording. Leaves plenty of room for old and good vivid memories to creep in. I am dating myself something fierce. 😂
Still breaks my heart every time I watch this. It was only second down, and they did get a field goal out of it. Would my Oilers have won even if the catch was ruled a touchdown? Probably not as Pittsburgh was that good. Still can hope so though. :)
I read somewhere that a sportswriter asked if the Patriots had scored a TD on their first possession of SB20 it would've made a difference. Yes, someone answered, it would've made the final score 42-14. I think the same applies here; Pittsburgh WAS that good.
Wilson should have scored on the play after the missed TD. Lambert made a shoestring tackle. What really broke their will was the 3rd and 20 Steelers conversion on the ensuing drive.
Yes, Pittsburgh was a great team, no doubt, but if there was a call that they could get, they certainly seemed to get it, especially in Pittsburgh. Renfro's catch was a TD.
@Jacob Melecio tough to let that go if you were an Oilers fan, that call was a momentum shifter, if that's get called correctly then it's a tie game, never know what would have happened because of the momentum change. Good game by both teams love the fact that the Steelers players acted with class & showed mad respect for the Oilers in post game interviews.
I watched this game 40 years ago. That was during my senior year in high school. The AFC championship game was more respectable than the year before. Steelers prevails.
the difference in the game... Pgh's backs ran well on that concrete, but Campbell went nowhere. the NFL has been incrementally erasing the idea & possibility of a dominant capital-D Defense since the 1970's.
@@indy_go_blue6048 2012 when NFL top 10 had their top 10 passing seasons of all time. All those QB's from 2012 season could not have played in this era. Game is totally influenced by fantasy football plus concussions
A car and truck parked on the field in the slush. These ashtray style stadiums were so MEH. Three Rivers Pittsburgh, Riverfront Cincinnati, Fulton County Atlanta.
True... but Pgh was too busy winning to care about their hideous concrete ashtray. And when the Rooney's got their chance to build a new stadium, they built another MEH stadium. HF has views, but everything else about it is generic & forgettable.
What did I miss, 😲... this is nice football, 2 drives with no flags, pure aggression, man. I only saw highlights but never saw a game with this steelers team. I was born too late
@@lloydkline3265 You should try watching this game. The Steelers stopped Campbell each time he touched the ball. Campbell couldn't gain an inch. He was a terrific back, but this game proved he could be turned into a non-factor.
Dick Enberg and Melin Olsen were the best...they were both adamant it was a TD...I was a Steeler fan at the time and it upset me that they didn't get the call right...total bullshit.
I watch this game, I was a big Houston fan. After Vernon Perry scored the touchdown off the interception that was it for Houston. The referees made sure that the Pittsburgh Steelers were going to the Super Bowl. They did that for the Steelers quite a few years.
They were BRUTAL. I'm from the NFC Central. Packers, Bears, Vikings, Lions, and lol Buccaneers? We had some hella games as well. The Steelers, Browns, Bengals, and Oilers were BRUTAL. Steelers were the "Big Dogs" in the 70's. Everyone wanted a piece. But the Steelers gave it back 5X's. Wicked games.
AFC Central was a blood bath.. People probably don’t realize that Cleveland and Cincinnati were very good in the mid 70’s and 80’s.. Growing up a Bengals fan I was always a nervous wreck when they had to go down to Houston and play in that darn Astrodome.. I almost just checked the loss column when I got my Frisch’s Big Boy schedule before the season. House of Pain was no laughing matter Nor was that Dog Pound in Cleveland.. I try not to be the bitchy old man that says back in my day.. But the NFL is a complete disaster these days. Doesn’t even resemble the same game.. just look at coaches then and now.. those coaches had substance and character.. these little suck asses now all wear their corporate gear they are told to wear. If a coach wore a cowboy hat now they would probably say it was racist..
The sight of Jim Tunney walking away from that officials' huddle and waving "incomplete"...was one of the most sickening sights I've ever seen at a sports event. Total incompetence.
Like it would have mattered, I was 4 at the time and I can say thank you Jesus that I get to witness this legendary Steelers defense and Bradshaw is terrible.
@@bicgohill8756 I was born in 1978, and I can remember the Steelers and Terry Bradshaw. In fact, I have a picture of me around Christmas 1979 wearing a Steelers sweat suit with a number 79 on it
Damn the Steelers had 52 giveaways that season and 42 take aways at a -10 turnover margin. That's mind blowing. It's mind blowing that it took the Cowher led Steelers in 1995 to win a AFC Title at Three Rivers. Wow 16 years between AFC Titles!!!
WHO REMEMBERS THAT MICHAEL HENDERSON MADE A SONG CALLED WIDE RECEIVER SOON AFTER THIS GAME WAS OVER AND THAT SONG BECAME HIS BIGGEST HIT OF HIS MANY HIT RECORDS?BY THE WAY I REMEMBER WATCHING THIS GAME.I WAS 16 WHEN THIS GAME WAS PLAYED ON JAN.6,1980.NOW HERE I AM TWO BIRTHDAYS AWAY FROM TURNING 60 YEARS OLD.
In the Game of the week show narrated by Harry Kallas, they show a new angle from behind Renfros catch, and this new angle shows Renfro bobbled the ball, and Harry says its therefore the right call. Problem is that even with that bobble, still is clear ( if you slow it down and use replay 😎) that Renfro secured it in time for the Touchdown
Yeah, I'm a Steelers fan and knew that the Oilers probably had a touchdown with Renfroe, but I believe it would've just tied the game, which was still in the 3rd quarter at that time, so Houston still had time but just couldn't quite overcome the ref's blunder.
Criminal there wasn't instant replay, when the Networks have the footage & angles; makes no sense: No doubt it was a RENFRO ROBBERY on that play; a real shame u lose a chance to win in that fashion: unless u have a closer 3rd side angle to see if he juggled the ball, it wasn't a close call based on the 2nd / overhead shot, where it appears he had control & feet down: maybe if Renfro had celebrated a bit to confirm the catch that may have swayed the officials, but despite that, it should have been a TD: but they it feels like they were determined to miss it & give Pittsburgh the breaks
@@sidDkid87 Ha ha! I don't remember watching it all, but I do remember watching a few of the episodes before it was cancelled. You're right, that premier is uploaded on YT and I've fallen asleep both times I've tried to watch it.
@@kidmack1121 well, at least it's a cure for insomnia - so, it wasn't a total waste - that being said, I always liked Malden - he had an excellent film resumé
I remember this game when I was a kid Mel Blount was a heck of a tackler for a corner...steelers tough to beat in three rivers in the playoffs during there 6 year run!!
Jeremy Thompson Lester Hayes and mike Haynes was the greatest pair who played for the same team at the same time I would say Willie brown is top 4 also of all time
I wonder why Houston didnt pick the moniker back up when they got the expansion team... it wouldve been cool. They couldve even used the old color scheme, you know? The silver and blue from the early 70s? 🎶... Houston Oilers number one...🎵
At least, Houston has an NFL team, and I hope they win it all this season, assuming there is one, but I have to say, KC ought to be right up there. Patrick Mahomes is just too damn good; only giving credit where it's due.
I watched the whole game, commercials and all. What a great time to be an American. Women were women, men were men. And there was real hitting in football🤛🏽
