L.A.’s greatest sports moments, No. 13: Marcus Allen’s Super Bowl run
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We asked you to send in your picks for the greatest sports moments in L.A. history, and 1,181 ballots later we are unveiling the top 20 vote-getters. Each weekday we will unveil a new moment until we reach No. 1.
No. 13: Marcus Allen’s Super Bowl run (2,809 points)
After years of watching the Rams come up short of a Super Bowl title, L.A. football fans finally got a chance to celebrate when the L.A. Raiders defeated the Washington Redskins, 38-9, in Super Bowl XVIII. And there’s one moment from that game they celebrate more than any other: Marcus Allen’s 74-yard run for a touchdown.
On the final play of the third quarter, after taking a handoff from quarterback Jim Plunkett, Allen headed around the left end. He ran into a wall of Redskins, reversed field and evaded several Redskins’ tacklers on the way to the end zone.
‘We had at least seven guys touch him and couldn’t bring him down,’ said then-Redskins guard Mark May, who watched the play helplessly from the sideline.
The run broke a record of 58 yards set by Tom Matte in Super Bowl III. Some consider it one of the greatest runs in NFL history. Allen finished the game with 191 yards in 20 carries, with two touchdowns. The former USC standout became only the third Heisman Trophy winner to also win Super Bowl MVP.
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No. 14: Lakers win 33 in a row
No. 15: Robert Horry’s game-winner
No. 16: Honoring Roy Campanella
No. 19: Rick Monday saves the flag
No. 20: Kobe to Shaq alley-oop
-- Houston Mitchell
Photo: Marcus Allen (32) is off on a Super Bowl-record 74-yard touchdown run that gave the Raiders a 34-9 lead on the final play of the third quarter against the Redskins. Credit: Associated Press