Super Bowl XV

Super Bowl XV
27	10
Date	January 25, 1981
Stadium	Louisiana Superdome, New Orleans, Louisiana
MVP	Jim Plunkett, quarterback
Favorite	Eagles by 3
Referee	Ben Dreith
Attendance	76,135
Hall of Famers
	Raiders: Al Davis (owner/general manager), Tom Flores (head coach), Cliff Branch, Ray Guy, Ted Hendricks, Art Shell, Gene Upshaw; Eagles: Dick Vermeil (head coach), Harold Carmichael, Claude Humphrey
Ceremonies
National anthem	Helen O'Connell
Coin toss	Marie Lombardi, widow of Vince Lombardi
Halftime show	Jim Skinner Productions presents "Mardi Gras Festival"
TV in the United States
Network	NBC
Announcers	Dick Enberg, Merlin Olsen, John Brodie and Len Dawson
Nielsen ratings	44.4 ; (68.29 million viewers)
Market share	63
Cost of 30-second commercial	$324,000
Radio in the United States
Network	CBS Radio
Announcers	Jack Buck and Hank Stram
	← XIV ; Super Bowl ; XVI → ;

Super Bowl XV was an American football game between the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Oakland Raiders and the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Philadelphia Eagles to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion for the 1980 season. The Raiders defeated the Eagles by the score of 27–10, becoming the first wild card playoff team to win a Super Bowl.

The game was played at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana, on January 25, 1981, five days after the Iran hostage crisis ended. The game was thus held under patriotic fervor, as the pregame ceremonies honored the end of the crisis.

The Raiders were making their third Super Bowl appearance after posting an 11–5 regular season record, but losing a tiebreaker to the AFC West division winner San Diego Chargers. Oakland then advanced to the Super Bowl with playoff victories over the Houston Oilers, Cleveland Browns, and San Diego. The Eagles were making their first Super Bowl appearance after posting a 12–4 regular season record and postseason victories over the Minnesota Vikings and the Dallas Cowboys.

Aided by two touchdown passes from quarterback Jim Plunkett, the Raiders jumped out to a 14–0 lead in the first quarter of Super Bowl XV, from which the Eagles never recovered. Oakland linebacker Rod Martin also intercepted Philadelphia quarterback Ron Jaworski three times for a Super Bowl record. Plunkett was named the Super Bowl MVP after completing 13 of 21 passes for 261 yards and three touchdowns, while also rushing for 9 yards. Plunkett was also the second Heisman Trophy winner to be named Super Bowl MVP after Roger Staubach in Super Bowl VI.

^ DiNitto, Marcus (January 25, 2015). "Super Bowl Betting History – Underdogs on Recent Roll". The Linemakers. Sporting News. Archived from the original on February 4, 2015. Retrieved February 4, 2015.
^ "Super Bowl History". Vegas Insider. Retrieved February 4, 2015.
^ "Super Bowl Winners". NFL.com. Retrieved February 4, 2015.
^ "Historical Super Bowl Nielsen TV Ratings, 1967–2009 – Ratings". TV by the Numbers. January 18, 2009. Archived from the original on December 22, 2015. Retrieved October 9, 2012.

[1] DiNitto, Marcus (January 25, 2015). "Super Bowl Betting History – Underdogs on Recent Roll". The Linemakers. Sporting News. Archived from the original on February 4, 2015. Retrieved February 4, 2015.

[2] "Super Bowl History". Vegas Insider. Retrieved February 4, 2015.

[3] "Super Bowl Winners". NFL.com. Retrieved February 4, 2015.

[4] "Historical Super Bowl Nielsen TV Ratings, 1967–2009 – Ratings". TV by the Numbers. January 18, 2009. Archived from the original on December 22, 2015. Retrieved October 9, 2012.

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