The Game: The Daily News' Stan Hochman at Super Bowl I

By Stan Hochman

Philadelphia Daily News

LOS ANGELES — Willie Wood is another one of those guys who everybody said was too little to play pro football. So he sat down and wrote a bunch of letters to a bunch of teams and told them how he thought he was big enough and tough enough. The Green Bay Packers answered their letter.

So the guy they got for a five-cent stamp turned out to be one of the heroes in the richest pro football game ever played. And now nobody says Willie Wood isn't big enough or fast enough or tough enough to play pro football.

Green Bay walloped Kansas City, 35-10, in the Super Bowl yesterday afternoon and it doesn't sound as though one interception could have turned that game inside out.

But it was only 14-10 at the half, and the American Football League people were watching the half-time extravaganza with "I told you so" smirks splashed all over their sun-kissed faces.

Kansas City took the second-half kickoff and spurted into Green Bay territory, bam, bam, just like that. Then Len Dawson drifted back to pass and a great green wave of Packers went to engulf him. Dawson, on his heels, lobbed a pass towards the flanker. The ball wobbled into flight and settled into Wood's arms.

He zigged and he zagged 30 yards with it, trying to remember how he used to scorch the Coliseum grass when he played at USC. He got to the five yard line before Mike Garrett tugged him down from behind. On the very next play, Elijah Pitts banged through the left tackle for the touchdown, the smirks went off the AFL faces and the zest went out of Kansas City.

After that, it was no contest, which is what a lot of people predicted. "The interception changed the personality of the game," a dejected Hank Stram said in the Kansas City clubhouse afterwards. "You don't like to say that one play did that much, but it seemed to."

Wood thought so, too.

"We got that quick six points, and they had to play our game after that," he said. "Then I knew we had them. On the interception saw we had strong rush on the quarterback.

"I dropped off, because I knew I wouldn't get beat deep. Caffey deflected the ball. I didn't use very good running technique or I would have scored. If I were a running back, Vince probably would take a look at that run and cut me."

Lombardi would sooner cut his wrists then cut Wood. He agreed that Willie's swipe was a key play and he wasn't about to claim any prize for half-time oratory.

"We weren't aggressive the first half," he said. "How did I get them to be more aggressive? There was no hullabaloo, no big emotional charge. We're professional people."

Lombardi's professional people spent the first half on defense mystified by Dawson's slick faking. He would freeze the front four with his acting and then hit a receiver in front of a hesitant halfback. In the second half, starting with Wood's interception, the Packers ignored the fakery to pursue Dawson recklessly.

"It was a matter of getting together," Wood said. "We were too cautious in the first half. We usually slash. But their rollouts and play-action stuff left us flat. The second half we disregarded the play-action, we read their patterns better and calmed down.

"After I made the interception, some of the guys told me, 'big play.' We were a different team after that, and it was a different game. I guess it was the biggest play I've made because this was the biggest game and a lot was riding on it."

Besides the prestige of the older, established snobbish National Football League, there was also the tidy sum of $15,000 involved. Someone asked Wood what he would do with his share and he said, "I'm getting married on Feb. 4. That's liable to rule out doing any other thing."

When it was over, Packers reacted modestly. "No beer, no champagne," Lombardi explained. "We're professionals."

Lombardi couldn't be coaxed into belittling Kansas City. "They've got great speed," he said. "But I don't think they're as good as the top teams in the NFL."

Bart Starr, who won a sports car as the outstanding player in the game, had another of his patented high-stakes games. he completed 16-of-23 passes for 250 yards and hit ancient Max McGee on two touchdown throws.

"They're a fine football team," Starr said generously. "We executed better in the second half and our defense played very well. It's about as simple as that.

The two touchdowns that McGee scored exposed the basic flaw in Kansas City's gambling defense.

"Max is tough to cover on a blitz situation," he said. When he wasn't hitting McGee, Starr was flinging the ball to Marv Fleming or Elijah Pitts or Carroll Dale. And when the Packers got 11 points in front after the interception, Kansas City had to abandon its running game.

"They went 11 points up on us," guard Ed Budde said, "and then they really came at us. They didn't worry about the run, or anything. They just turned loose on us."

The Chiefs were hopeful that the cynics wouldn't judge them on their shaggy second half. "It hurts more than I  thought it would," defensive end Jerry Mays said. "They're a great ball club. The best we've played."

It didn't decide the superiority of one league over the other, nor did it muffle the bitterness of the AFL people who had to wait seven years for the chance at the NFL legions.

McGee, who has a rakish sense of humor, put the whole "Who's No. 1" business in its proper perspective. "Now, we ought to play Alabama tomorrow," he suggested, "and settle the whole thing."

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By Stan Hochman

Philadelphia Daily News

LOS ANGELES — Max McGee roomed with Paul Hornung for 10 years, which is not exactly the same as living in the dormitory with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. What it takes is endurance, patience, a sense of humor, an unlisted telephone, aspirin, endurance, a large ice bucket and endurance.

Now Hornung is getting married and McGee is quitting football, which are the sort of things that call for a party. Wooee, do they call for a party.

So Max McGee had his party yesterday. In front of 63,036 paying customers and eight zillion television watchers, McGee turned Green Bay's Super Bowl romp over Kansas City into his own personal lollapalooza of a party.

He is a 34-years-old and he has played so seldom this season that he caught only four passes. But Boyd Dowler wrecked his shoulder on the third play of the game and McGee had to lie to his 34-year-old legs the rest of the sultry afternoon.

Hornung: 'He's Fantastic'

He caught seven passes for 138 yards. Two of them went for touchdowns. The first one he caught in one big paw and the second one he bobbled in the end zone like a soapy balloon before clutching it to his pounding chest.

Afterwards he talked about the game with a joyous mixture of technical football and flip humor. When he disappeared briefly to take a television bow, Hornung discussed his running mate.

"He's fantastic," he said. "He makes the big play. He just has the uncanny ability to get across the goal line. He's as dangerous inside the 40-year-line as anybody playing. He just has great moves. Today they were in a defense we hadn't seen in a long time. They were covering that end man-to-man and that really leaves a guy like Max open."

"The two touchdowns were automatics against the weakside blitz," McGee explained, wearing his party grin. "I run a quick-post pattern. Their weakside safety covers our halfback. That leaves their halfback on me. No one can cover  you man-to-man, not even an old man like I am.

"On the first touchdown, Bart (Starr) threw the ball a little behind me because he saw the safetyman move up and he wanted to avoid the interception.

"I stuck one hand back there and the ball stuck in it. I almost fainted. I wanted to look in the other hand and see if there was a check for $15,000. When I caught that one I knew I was gonna have a good day.

"The second one was the same pattern. We ran a fake to Taylor and I ran the quick post. I bumped into the safety man and got straightened up which is why I juggled it.

"It surprised me that they'd give us the quick post. The NFL crowds it off. We're notorious for using it. I've been running it for 13 years. That's why I thought I'd have a good day if I played and I know Boyd would have had a good day if he hadn't gotten hurt."

McGee jubilant spree symbolizes Green Bay's depth. They go to the bench and find someone to catch seven passes for 138 yards.

'On This Team, Everybody Likes Everybody'

"That's our strength," he said. "The number one thing about this team, though, is its closeness as a unit. I've never seen guys I can be around for six months and still like to see 'em at breakfast.

On this team, everybody likes everybody.

"I talked to Paul in the morning. I said, what if Dowler gets hurt? I might not be in good enough shape to play a long time.

"I was sitting there, enjoying the shady side of the field when I hear someone yelling 'McGee'. "I said to myself, 'Well, you're gonna find out right now.'

"It was different than the other games recently where I sat around for two or three quarters. Against Dallas I got in and the first pass hit me in a bad spot . . . My chest. Vince hollered, 'For God's sakes, warm up.' This time I was all right. "My legs stayed good, but my wind-pipe started telling me things. The last pass I caught, if I was fresher, I'd have taken it for a touchdown. I was dog tired.

"The last few years I depend on knowing the defense. Every defense has a weakness. I don't get there as fast as I used to, but I still get to the same place.

"I've learned a lot from Vince. I can take two steps off the line and know basically what defense they're in. I try to go where they're weakest. They used a lot of odd-man lines which are great against the run, but leave you stone-dead against the pass."

McGee is some kind of paradox . . . a student of the game and an impish sort of rover. "I like to have fun," he said. "Mr. Lombardi doesn't like you to have too much fun. Hornung's getting married, though, and I'm going on the honeymoon. Look, you room with Hornung for 10 years and you've got to be superman. That's mostly a joke."

Sunday, the joke was mostly on Kansas City. The balding 34-year-old McGee frugged and watusied and mash-potatoed his way through the Chiefs backfield. He did everything but serve 'em martinis.

"I'm hanging 'em up," he babbled happily. "Sayonara. That was a helluva one to quit on and I quit."

Max, it was a lovely party.

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By Stan Hochman

Philadelphia Daily News

LOS ANGELES — How would you like to have a nickel for every time the quarterback faces a third down-and-five situation and somebody says, "That's pro football"?

You could have walked out of the Kansas City clubhouse yesterday with a pocketful of nickels. Bart Starr third-downed the Chiefs to death in the first annual Super Bowl, and afterwards coach Hank Stram led the chorus of praise.

"Starr was terrific all afternoon," Stram said. "He made the big third down play. Somebody said he hit seven-of-nine third down plays the first half and five of-seven in the second half. That's fantastic."

Safetyman Bobby Hunt agreed with his boss.

"Starr drilled us," he said. "He's hard to read. One time I was keying in on his look. He looked at the weak side receiver, then turned and hit (Carroll) Dale, Green Bay's good. They don't get excited. They just execute."

And Starr was the chief executioner.

Super-stitions

The Packers voted Vince Lombardi the game ball. "This one is something special," he said. "I wouldn't say this was one of our better games. We weren't aggressive enough at the start. Our defense was grabbing them instead of tackling them." . . . Try to grab Mike Garrett and you get a handful of smog. The chesty little sprinter gained only 17 yards on six carries, but he jiggled and joggled on punt returns that had the crowd gasping.

"Garrett is something like Dick Bass," Green Bay's Ray Nitschke said. "You need long arms to get him because he stops and starts and wiggles. He can exhaust you on one play." . . . Kansas City's movable pocket was no myth. It mythified Green Bay in the first half. "The blockers kind of float off and wait for you to come at them," defensive end Willie Davis explained. "I guess you could say we spent the first half adjusting and finding out what we could do and the second half doing it." . . . Herb Adderley, who did an efficient job muffling Otis Taylor: "We played our game with the pressure on us. We don't panic, whether the other team scorers on not." . . . They say that Lombardi established some fantastic fines for the week, including a $2,500 fee for breaking the 11 p.m. curfew . . . Len Dawson on the wobbly pass that Willie Wood intercepted early in the second half: "I shouldn't have thrown it. The play turned the game around." . . .

The crowd of 63,036 filled about two-thirds of the 93,000-seat Coliseum . . . The gate was estimated at $730,000, a Coliseum record, but short of the pro football record of $740,000 set in the NFL title game between the Packers and Cowboys at Dallas Jan. 1 . . . Previous Coliseum money record was $552,000 for the first game of the 1959 World Series between the Dodgers and White Sox.