Talk About Your Hometown Heroes Davis Scores Three Tds In Denver’s Super Bowl Victory
This was the sweetest homecoming of all for Terrell Davis.
First, his local high school retired his number and then he retired Denver’s four-game Super Bowl losing streak with an MVP performance in Sunday’s 31-24 victory over Green Bay.
And he did it in three quarters.
Jolted during the first quarter, when he rushed for 64 of his 157 yards, Davis felt the onset of a migraine headache.
“I got dazed and blacked out for a minute,” he said. “I couldn’t see. I knew it would clear up. It’s happened before. I knew I would get back into the game.”
Davis was helped to the sideline, returned for one play and then went out, missing the entire second quarter. Trainers gave him medication and the Super Bowl’s halftime extravaganza gave him extra recovery time.
“We had that long halftime and that helped,” Davis said. “I still had the aura but I knew I had to be strong. I knew if we run the ball, we’d have a good chance against these guys.”
Davis became the catalyst for the end of a 13-game AFC losing streak by simply running over the Packers.
He thought that the underdog role - Denver became just the second wild-card team to win - helped the Broncos.
“The underdog role was nothing new to us,” he said. “We like that role. A lot of teams read the papers and watch TV and buy into that weak AFC team. We won in Kansas City and we won in Pittsburgh. I loved playing Green Bay at a neutral site.”
It wasn’t exactly neutral for Davis.
San Diego is home for him, and Lincoln High School - the same school that produced 1984 Super Bowl MVP Marcus Allen - welcomed him back by retiring his number at the start of Super Bowl week. It was a neat touch for a an ex-nose tackle and blocking fullback, who never thought about the kind of day he experienced Sunday.
“Of course not,” he said. “You can’t top this. It’s not even real right now.”
MEMO: This sidebar appeared with the story: MVP NUMBERS Terrell Davis finished with 157 yards and three touchdowns on 30 carries.