Charlie Garner

Opinion Editor

avg6206@psu.edu 

On Sunday, Feb. 11, 2024, the Kansas City Chiefs and the San Francisco 49ers played in Super Bowl LVIII in Las Vegas, where the Chiefs defeated the 49ers 25-22 in overtime. 

The game was very back-and-forth, where the teams were in a tie of 19-19 during the regular time. In overtime, the 49ers led 22–19 thanks to a field goal from Jake Moody that was 27 yards out. However, as he has done so many times before, Kansas City quarterback Patrick Mahomes led the Chiefs down the field, and with 13 seconds remaining, he connected with receiver Mecole Hardman on a one-yard touchdown pass to win the team their third Super Bowl in the previous five seasons and launch the franchise into a football dynasty. 

Super Bowl LVIII was only the second Super Bowl to go into overtime, with the first being Super Bowl LI in 2017, when the New England Patriots beat the Atlanta Falcons. And it is also the first time there has been a back-to-back Super Bowl win in 17 years. 

No team scored in the first quarter. The 49ers scored first in the second quarter of the game, taking a 3-0 lead with a 55-yard field goal from Jake Moody. Their lead increased to 10-0 with a double-pass trick play with five minutes left in the first half. The ball was returned by 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy to wide receiver Jauan Jennings, who passed it to Christian McCaffrey, who ran 21 yards for the touchdown across the field. The Chiefs finally scored before halftime, thanks to a 28-yard field goal done by Harrison Butker. 

The game was full of turnovers, with both teams committing egregious errors. The running backs were having difficulty gripping the ball. On the first drive of the game, McCaffrey fumbled. Later in the second quarter, with the Chiefs still without a point and having set up a possible first-and-goal from the 49ers’ nine-yard line, running back Isaiah Pacheco lost the ball, allowing the 49ers to recover. 

Butker broke Moody’s record, which he had just set earlier in the game, midway through the third quarter. He made his own 57-yard field goal to reduce the 49ers’ advantage to 10-6. 

Ray-Ray McCloud, the 49ers’ returner, fumbled a punt with less than three minutes remaining in the third quarter. The Chiefs recovered, and on the very next play, Mahomes found Marquez Valdes-Scantling for a 16-yard touchdown throw, giving the Chiefs a 13-10 lead. 

Early in the fourth quarter, Purdy and Jennings connected for a six-yard score as the 49ers responded. However, Moody failed to make the extra point, giving the Niners a narrow 16–13 advantage. With less than six minutes remaining, Butker’s 24-yard field goal tied the game at 16 points each. With less than two minutes remaining, Moody made up for his earlier miss by sinking a 53-yard field goal to give the 49ers a 19-16 lead. With three seconds remaining, Mahomes led the Chiefs down the field and set up the game’s tying field goal, a 29-yarder, sending the game into overtime.