Biography of Joe Montana
Biography of Joe Montana
Joe Montana. When his name is said, sports fans all over the world begin to tremble with excitement. When it is announced over the loudspeaker at football games, fans go wild. He was the greatest quarterback to ever play the game:
Quarterbacks may come and go, but none will ever be as brilliant, nor as exciting as Joe Montana. He was Joe Cool, the quarterback who never quit, the quarterback who could overcome any deficit, any pressure, and injury. Despite horrible injuries, he won more than seventy percent of the games he started during an illustrious sixteen-year career in the National Football League. Not bad for someone who had eighty-one players picked ahead of him in the 1979 draft (Miller).
I remember the first time that I ever saw Joe play. It was early in the 1988 season, against the New York Giants. Games versus home teams (Giants and Jets) and prime time games are just about the only times the New York audience get chances to watch the 49ers on television during the season. I was lucky, because in the first football game that I ever saw, I got to see the 49ers and Montana's magical play and greatness. The 49ers were down 17-13 in the fourth quarter with about three minutes remaining and Joe sprung into action by driving the 49ers down the field seventy or so yards and won the game with a touchdown pass to wide receiver Freddie Soloman. The final score was 20-17, another comeback performance for the king of comebacks, Joe Montana.
He instantly became my favorite player and the 49ers became my favorite team. Later that year, during the playoffs, I saw the 49ers (with awesome performances by Joe Montana, Roger Craig, Jerry Rice, John Taylor, Ronnie Lott, Charles Haley, and company) destroy all their opponents by at least twenty points a game and go to Super Bowl XXIII. This was my first Super Bowl, and Joe Montana shone when it was most needed. With less than two minutes remaining, he drove the 49ers ninety-two yards and hit receiver John Taylor for a thirty-four yard touchdown to win the game. A sterling performance by teammate Jerry Rice kept Joe from winning his third MVP trophy. Ever since the 1988-1989 season, I've been an avid fan of Joe Montana and the San Francisco 49ers.
No one on and off the...