A moment of Super Bowl glory

Everyone remembers the Super Bowl exploits of Terry Bradshaw and Joe Montana. They were supposed to shine when they got their teams to football's ultimate game. And they did. The same can be said for Bart Starr and Phil Simms.

But in the first 40 installments of the Super Bowl, several players came out of the shadows to help their teams win and earn for themselves an unexpected dose of fame and glory.

These men made some of the biggest strides from mediocre to memorable:

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MAX McGEE

Green Bay Packers

SUPER BOWL I, Jan. 15, 1967, Los Angeles

McGee was 34 and on the way out when the Packers played the Kansas City Chiefs. He didn't expect to play; heck, he had caught only four passes all season. So he stayed out all night before the game and had a wicked hangover. When Boyd Dowler got hurt, McGee got the call from coach Vince Lombardi and was able to see through the beer goggles. He caught seven passes for 138 yards and two touchdowns in the Packers' 35-10 win. Alas, Bart Starr was named MVP.

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JOE NAMATH

New York Jets

SUPER BOWL III, Jan. 12, 1969, Miami

No one expected the upstart Jets to beat the Baltimore Colts, favored by 18 points. Joe Namath did. He was so sure he guaranteed it. Then he went out and did it, completing 17 of 28 passes for 206 yards in the Jets' 16-7 dismantling of the Colts. And if you dispute the notion that Namath was mediocre, consider this: In 1968, he completed less than 50 percent of his passes and had more interceptions (17) than touchdowns (15). He had 173 TDs and 220 INTs in his career.

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JIM O'BRIEN

Baltimore Colts

SUPER BOWL V, Jan. 17, 1971, Miami