The Greatest Snow Games Ever Played

In light of me being snowed in here in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and watching the Saints get rocked by the Cowboys, I figured I would list some of the greatest football games ever to be played in the snow.

These are in no order, for all these games were great. Also, this does include some college games.

(As I finished this, the Saints lost. Goodbye perfection, though they deserve some mad respect.)

The Snowplow: December 12, 1982

The infamous "snowplow game" played between the New England Patriots and the Miami Dolphins.

The game was scoreless until the last five minutes of the fourth quarter, when the Patriots scored their game-winning field goal.

Yet it is the events directly before this field goal which give this game its fame.

Before the kick, Patriots coach Ron Meyer directed snowplow operator Mark Henderson to clear a spot on the field for the kicker. Miami coach Don Shua was furious, but the kick was good.

The following year, the NFL banned the use of snowplows during a game.

The incident is commemorated with an interactive exhibit at the Hall at Patriot Place within the Patriots' current home, Gillette Stadium. The plow itself, a John Deere Model 314 tractor with sweeper attached, hangs from the ceiling at the exhibit.

Ice Bowl: 1967 NFL Championship

The Ice Bowl is commonly known as the 1967 NFL Championship game. It was cold.

The game was played between the Dallas Cowboys and the Green Bay Packers, with the Packers victorious 21-17.

The actual air temperature of the game: -13 degrees
The wind chill: -48 degrees

It was so cold, the referees were unable to use their whistles for they froze to their lips (yes, just like in A Christmas Story).

During the game, the Packers jumped out to a 14-0 lead, but two turnovers lead to ten Dallas points.

On the first play of the fourth quarter, the Cowboys took a 17-14 lead with a 50 yard touchdown pass to Lance Rentzel.

With about five minutes left in the game, and starting from his own 32, quarterback Bart Starr of the Packers drove down the field. Finally, on a third a goal with seconds remaining, Starr punched it in the endzone for the win.

This was the Packers third-straight championship.

Freezer Bowl: January 10, 1982

Okay, so it's not technically snow, but it was cold. That might be why that called it the Freezer Bowl—though I am not quite sure. Y'all should Google it.

The game was played on January 10, 1982 and it was the AFC Championship game.

It was played between the San Diego Chargers and the Cincinnati Bengals. The Bengals won it 27-7.

What were the temperatures, you ask? They were negative nine degrees, and the wind chill was close to -40.

And I am here complaining of it being 10 degrees outside, silly me.

Truck Rule Game: January 19, 2002

This game, played on January 19 2002 between the New England Patriots and Oakland Raiders, saw Tom Brady in his playoff debut.

The heavy snow was just icing on the cake in this classic.

The name "Tuck Rule game" originates from the controversial game-changing play. In the play, Raiders cornerback Charles Woodson sacked Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, which in turn caused a fumble that was eventually recovered by Raiders' linebacker Greg Biekert.

Officials reviewed the play and determined that Brady's arm was moving forward, thus making it an incomplete pass. As a result, the original call was overturned, and the ball was given back to the Patriots, who moved the ball into field goal range.
On the final play of regulation, Patriots' Adam Vinatieri kicked a 45-yard field goal to tie the game 13-13, which sent the game into overtime.

In overtime, Vinatieri kicked a 23-yard field goal to win the game for the Patriots.

The Patriots went on to win the Super Bowl on, you guessed it, a last second field goal by Mr. Vinatieri.

Snow Bowl

This 1950s battle between Michigan and Ohio State is a classic.

At stake? A Rose Bowl and Big Ten Championship.

The Wolverines won this match 9-3, even though they had zero first downs and were 0-9 on passing attempts.

2000 Independence Bowl: December 31, 2000.

The 2000 Independence Bowl took place on New Year's Eve, 2000.

A freak snowstorm put the game under extreme winter conditions. Snow in Louisiana? I know, right?

The game was fought between Texas A&M and Mississippi State. Texas jumped out to 14-0 and 35-21 leads in the first and fourth quarter, but Mississippi State fought hard and tied the game, sending it into overtime.

Texas A&M scored on the first play of overtime, but missed the extra point, which turned into two points for the Bulldogs.

Mississippi ended up coming from behind yet again with a seven yard touchdown run to win the game and their second-straight bowl game.

Snow Bowl: December 1, 1985

The Snow Bowl was a NFL game played on December 1, 1985 between the Green Bay Packers and Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Lambeau Field in Green Bay.

Only 19,856 were in attendance, with over 36,000 "no-shows," the most in Packers history. Twelve inches of snow fell before the game, and another four to five inches fell during the game.

The game itself saw the Packers dominate the Buccaneers 21-0. Despite four turnovers, the Packers offense gained 512 total yards on 31 first downs, with the Buccaneers recording only 65 yards on five first downs

Thanksgiving Classic

This classic game (notice the title) was played between the Miami Dolphins and Dallas Cowboys on, guess when, Thanksgiving.

The Dolphins won 16-14 on a last minute field goal by Pete Stovanovich.

The Dolphins surprisingly went on to lose their next five games, finishing 9-7.

Snow Bowl (2007)

This game fought between the Cleveland Browns and Buffalo Bills.

The score was 8-0 Cleveland. The last 8-0 final occurred in 1929. Enough said.

Fog Bowl

Okay, it's not snow, but it was awesome.

The Fog Bowl was played in Chicago between the Bears and Eagles.

The fog rolled on in during the second quarter. What was the visibility, you may ask?

About 10 yards.

The Bears ended up winning the game 20-12, despite Eagles QB Randall Cunningham putting up 407 passing yards.

Almost all the players complained they could not see the first down markers, or in the Eagles case, the ball in the endzone, as they had zero touchdowns.

There's more!

So, there's just a handful of the greatest games played in the snow. Are there more? Of course! Feel free to comment with some others.

The better question, when will the next snow bowl happen. Maybe this weekend? It is possible, considering I am still sitting here, looking out my window at 18 inches of snow, and I think the Eagles play the 49ers in 12 hours.