Origin of the "Hail Mary Pass"

I agree with Brian at MCH that the term "Hail Mary Pass" is a cliché, but at least it is our cliché.  Here's the origin of the term.

In the Dallas/Minnesota 1975 NFL playoff game, the Cowboys started with the ball on their own 15-yard line, trailing 14-10, with one minute and fifty-one seconds left in the fourth quarter. Cowboys quarterback Roger Staubach(a staunch Catholic) managed a nine-play drive to midfield against the Minnesota Vikings defense. From midfield, with 24 seconds now remaining, Staubach lined up in the shotgun formation, took the snap, pump-faked left, then turned to his right and threw a desperation pass to wide receiver Drew Pearson, who was being covered by Minnesota Vikings cornerback Nate Wright. Wright was pushed in the back and fell to the ground and Pearson was barely able to complete the catch by trapping the ball against his right hip at the 5-yard line and backing into the end zone to make the score 16-14 in favor of Dallas, and what would eventually be the winning touchdown. In a later interview with Pearson, he stated that he thought he dropped the ball only to find it against his hip and then just waltzed right into the end zone.

The term "Hail Mary pass" was used by Roger Staubach following the game in a post-game interview. Previous to this play, a last-second desperation pass had been called several names, most notably the "Alley-Oop". Staubach, who had been hit immediately after throwing the ball and didn't see its ending, was asked about the play and he said, "You mean [Pearson] caught the ball and ran in for the touchdown? It was just a Hail Mary pass; a very, very lucky play." Staubach told reporters "I closed my eyes and said a Hail Mary". This was among the plays by Roger Staubach that enhanced his fame and legend as noted in NFL.

You may know Badgers football suffered the losing end of one of these plays on Saturday.  I'm told LarryD may have said a Hail Mary.  If the two teams match up again in the championship game, I'll be sure to pray that he falls asleep rendering him unable to invoke the Theotokos. 


"Who is she that cometh forth as the morning rising, fair as the moon, bright as the sun, terrible as an army set in array?"


... if you keep watching you can see the Viking fans hit an official in the head with a whiskey bottle.

It is really cool to see the Vikings playing outdoors though.

Doesn't the broadcaster sound like long time Packers radio sportcaster Jim Irwin?