49ers on Cloud Nine Heading to the Super Bowl
San Francisco Niners are headed to Super Bowl LIV on Feb. 2
The San Francisco 49ers are headed to Super Bowl LIV in Miami after a convincing 37-20 victory versus the Green Bay Packers to win the National Football Conference (NFC) Championship last Sunday night.
This is the Niners first Super Bowl appearance since 2013, and now, seven years later, the 49ers return to the nation’s biggest stage with a roster led by their suffocating defense, their clutch quarterback, Jimmy Garoppolo and breakout star, Raheem Mostert.
“When you can play good defense, run the football like that... it’s a good combo for success,” said quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo.
Through their first two playoff games, San Francisco has done exactly that.
On Sunday night, Green Bay was prepared to stop the 49ers passing game after Garoppolo torched the Packers defense for 253 yards and two touchdowns in Week 12 of the regular season. With that in mind, Garoppolo and head coach Kyle Shanahan handed the baton Mostert to lead the offense. Raheem Mostert finished the NFC Championship game with a career-high 220 rushing yards and four touchdowns. His performance left his teammates, and 49er fans, in awe.
“His talent shows,” said 49ers wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders. “Two hundred yards in an NFC Championship Game? That’s impressive, man.”
What is equally if not more impressive than Mostert’s Sunday night at Levi Stadium is the adversity the 27-year-old has overcome to finally thrive in the NFL.
Before landing with the 49ers, Mostert had gone through waivers five times, been signed to five different practice squads and ultimately released another five times before landing with San Francisco. At one point in his career, Mostert considered quitting the game of football.
“Too many cuts,” he said. “Too many losses that I’ve taken.”
On Sunday night, his resilience paid off. Mostert forced eight missed tackles and rushed for 10 first downs, the most of any 49ers player this season. At the end of the game, Mostert and his 7-month old son stood on the NFC Champions’ stage smiling as confetti rained down. Mostert called the moment something he will cherish forever.
“For [my son] to be able to have that opportunity to be on stage with me, after what I’ve accomplished, after what I’ve been through, I can’t put into words how it feels.”
One more game remains for Mostert and the 49ers to lament themselves into NFL history. The team’s biggest test yet will come on Feb. 2 when they face the Kansas City Chiefs in the Super Bowl.
The 49ers defense will be tasked to stop defending league MVP Patrick Mahomes and his electrifying Chiefs offense. The game will feature the league’s best offense in Kansas City against arguably the best defensive team in the league from San Francisco.
Even though both teams have been dominant throughout the playoffs, they took different paths to reach this year’s Super Bowl.
The Chiefs were expected to be a strong team all year. They began the season as 8-1 odds to win the Super Bowl.
In contrast, the 49ers were much bigger underdogs—their odds were a mere 33-1 to win it all in September.
That is why the season is not played on paper. The 49ers have defied their low expectations and enter the Super Bowl with a powerful defense that has allowed the fewest yards per play in the entire league.
Super Bowl LIV is set to be a great matchup. Two bright head coaches in Andy Reid and Kyle Shanahan. An elite offense against the game’s best defense.
The Chiefs and 49ers have overcome numerous injuries from big-time contributors, but both teams are getting healthy at the right time. They will have two weeks to prepare for one final showdown in Miami.
Contact Nic Carpino at ncarpino@scu.edu or call (408) 554-4852.