Chiefs prevail over Eagles in Super Bowl LVII

PAUL NOBLE Sports Writer

With 11 seconds remaining, Harrison Butker propelled the Kansas City Chiefs over the Philadelphia Eagles with a 27-yard game-winning field goal to win Super Bowl 57. However, this might have been the most anticlimactic game-winning field goal in Super Bowl history.

With 1:54 remaining, it was actually a 35-35 tie game. The Chiefs had a third and eight from the Philadelphia 15-yard line.

Patrick Mahomes dropped back to pass and threw deep in the corner of the endzone for JuJu SmithSchuster. The pass was incomplete. The Chiefs were surely going to kick a field goal, and Jalen Hurts would get a shot at a game-winning drive for the Eagles. The ending would be one of the best in Super Bowl history, right? Wrong.

Unfortunately for Philadelphia, a little yellow flag sat on the freshcut grass in Glendale, Ariz. Philadelphia’s James Bradberry was called for holding, which set the Chiefs up with a fresh set of downs and control of the clock. “I don’t love that call,” Fox analyst Greg Olsen immediately said on the live broadcast, and many other people didn’t either. On the next play, Jerick McKinnon got the ball. As McKinnon approached the end zone ready to score, he slid down on the 2-yard line, purposely deciding not to score. Instead, the Chiefs kneeled the ball twice and put the trust in their kicker Butker. While it may not have been the final two-minute script fans were hoping for, the rest of the game sure did live up to the hype.

The Chiefs found themselves down 24-14 at the half. In the first two quarters, Jalen Hurts threw for one touchdown and rushed for two. Mahomes, on the other hand, had a rough first half. Kansas City’s lone offensive touchdown came from the opening drive, and the rest of the first half offensively was not ideal for the Chiefs. The Chiefs had two punts, a missed field goal and a reaggravated Mahomes ankle in the first half.

Mahomes and the Chiefs came out swinging in the second half. In the first 18 minutes of play, the Chiefs managed two 75-yard touchdown drives. While the Eagles put together a brilliant 17-play drive, it ended in just three points. The Chiefs, at this point, had taken the lead 28-27.

With 10:33 in the fourth quarter, the Eagles punted from their 32-yard line after a three-and-out stop by the Kansas City defense. Kadarius Toney caught the ball at the Kansas City 30 and ran it back 65 yards to the Philadelphia 5-yard line. A couple of plays later, Sky Moore brought in a 4-yard touchdown pass from Mahomes, and with the PAT, the Chiefs had taken the lead 35-27. Kansas City was in control, but Hurts and the Eagles put together a 75-yard drive, capped off by a third rushing touchdown for Hurts, which put the Eagles within two, 35-33. A successful twopoint conversion by Hurts tied up the game at 35-35. From there, Mahomes led the Chiefs on a 12-play, 66-yard drive, and converted two third downs along the way, one thanks to the controversial holding call on Bradberry, before Butker kicked the game-winning 27-yard field goal.

Kansas City head coach Andy Reid was showered in Gatorade, and the Chiefs won their second Super Bowl in the last four years. Mahomes was named Super Bowl MVP, making Mahomes the first quarterback to win NFL MVP and Super Bowl MVP in the same year since UNI’s Kurt Warner did so in 1999 with the St. Louis Rams. It was an extraordinary year for the Chiefs, and the Mahomes Magic sure looks like it’s here to stay.

The Panthers did not let up in the final quarter, getting up by as much as 27 points. The Beacons had no chance of making a comeback, and the Panthers came away with the victory, 83-60.

While this was a huge victory to get the Panthers to first place in the conference, it was an even bigger victory for UNI

Head Coach Tanya Warren. With the Panther victory, Coach Warren recorded her 300th career victory. The game also marked her 507th game coached, giving her the all-time record for games coached in the Missouri Valley Conference, two amazing milestones for Coach Warren.

“Today was another terrific team win,” Coach Warren said after the game. “As for the mile - stones today, I can’t say enough about the past and present people who have helped me throughout the course of my journey. This milestone could not be possible without them. This is way bigger than me, it always has been. It’s a lot to take in. It’s hard to process that I was introduced to this game at five and for 50 plus years had my dad at my side. We lost him in June and I’m still trying to process all of this without him. It’s a lot and I’m extremely blessed to be surrounded by amazing people. Our administration, our staff, our players. This is all a credit to everybody that’s been a part of this program.”

All in all, it was a great day for the Panthers. However, things are only getting more exciting and challenging. The Panthers next game is against conference co-leader Illinois

State. The Panthers won the first matchup in Normal, Ill., but the winner of this contest will be in sole possession of first place in the conference. The Panthers will be hosting Illinois State in the McLeod Center on Thursday, Feb. 16. The game will start at 6 p.m.