1996 Super Bowl XXX

About Tempe, Arizona: Just south of the state capital Phoenix, the city of Tempe was excited about hosting Super Bowl 30 in Sun Devil Stadium. With a population just above 150000 the city was used to hosting close to 50 events per year in the stadium and were now preparing for one of the biggest events ever seen in the city. Thousands of fans from around the world would be travelling to this Arizona city to see the Dallas Cowboys take on the Pittsburgh Steelers in Super Bowl XXX.

Ticket Sales / Attendance: There were 76347 people in attendance at Sun Devil Stadium and it is estimated that another 94 million more football fans watched from home or other party locations around the world, setting an all time record.

Team Pre-Season Stats: The Dallas Cowboys came into the 1995-96 NFL season looking to rebound after missing out on a chance at their 3rd straight Super Bowl championship. The Dallas offence remained in tact as Troy Aikman, Emmitt Smith and Michael Irvin were ready to get back to championship form.

The Pittsburgh Steelers were looking to go deeper into the playoffs this year after a disappointing loss to the San Diego Chargers last year in the AFC championship game. With Neil O'Donnell as back as quarterback, other players including WR Yancey Thigpen would have to step up offensively.

Team Roster / Salaries: The Cowboys roster consisted of some high profile and highly paid players including QB Troy Aikman ($2.4 million), DE Charles Haley ($2.2 million), WR Michael Irvin ($1.9 million), RB Daryl Johnston ($1.4 million) and CB Deion Sanders ($2 million).

The Steelers also had some key players and salaries of their own on the roster including LB Kevin Greene ($1.69 million), OL John Jackson ($1.6 million), S Carnell Lake ($2.2 million), and QB Neil O'Donnell ($2.4 million).

Game Highlights: Dallas opened quickly in the 30th Super Bowl scoring on its first 3 possessions and taking a 13-0 lead on 2 field goals and a touchdown. Pittsburgh and O'Donnell responded with a 6 yard touchdown pass to Yancey Thigpen with only 13 seconds left in the first half cutting the Dallas lead to 6 entering half time.

In the 3rd quarter Emmitt Smith ran for a one yard touchdown to increase the Dallas lead back to 13. The Steelers responded once again though on a 46 field goal and a touchdown from Bam Morris after a successful onside kick recovery with only a little over 6 minutes remaining in the game. The momentum was in the Steelers favour until Larry Brown intercepted his second pass of the game leading to a touchdown by Emmitt Smith and an ultimate 27-17 victory.

Game MVP: The MVP of Superbowl 30 was Cowboys Corner Back Larry Brown. With 2 interceptions in the 2nd half Larry Brown changed the momentum of the game and led to 14 second half points for Dallas. These points killed any rally chance that the Steelers had and helped Dallas win their record setting 5th Super Bowl.

Half Time Show: Radio City presented the halftime show at Super Bowl thirty entitled "Take Me Higher" a celebration of 30 years of the game and it featured legendary performer Diana Ross.

Commercials: A 30 second commercial during this year's game cost a little over $1.0 million and continued the increased price trend of commercials during the Super Bowl. One of the most popular ads during the game was by Pepsi where it featured a Coca Cola driver who was causing trouble while trying to get a Pepsi from the cooler rather than his company's brand.

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