The Hail Mary pass

Many think that the last second deep pass to or near the end zone known as the Hail Mary was so named on December 28, 1975, during a divisional playoff game. The Dallas Cowboys were down 14-10 against the Minnesota Vikings. With 32 seconds remaining in the game, they possessed the ball near midfield. Roger Staubach fired a desperate pass downfield fifty yards to Drew Pearson. Pearson was knocked to the ground after colliding with a defender while adapting to the ball. There were no flags thrown. Dallas won thanks to the grab, moving them to the NFC Championship game. Staubach later told reporters, "It was a Hail Mary pass." The moniker stayed.

It wasn't the first time the moniker had been given to a desperate play. Players at the University of Notre Dame used the word as early as the 1920s. Georgetown utilized it in the 1940s, and Staubach called a Hail Mary throw against Michigan while playing for Navy. However, the 1975 action took place in the NFL playoffs, on a national platform via television. The Cowboys went on to defeat Los Angeles in the NFC Championship before falling to Pittsburgh in Super Bowl X, and the Hail Mary has been a staple of close NFL games ever since.

Date: December 28, 1975

Venue: Bloomington, Minnesota