Baltimore Ravens receiver Jacoby Jones opened the second half of Super Bowl XLVII last night with an 108-yard kick return for a touchdown that increased Baltimore’s lead over the San Francisco 49ers to 28-6.
His run, much like Beyonce’s halftime show performance, had electrified the crowd at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans, a city never short on entertainment. The problem with Jones’ 11-second dash was that it also seemed to have ended any hope of fans enjoying a competitive Super Bowl.
But later in the third quarter, with San Francisco facing a third-and-long situation, a blown transformer outside the Superdome caused a power outage that halted play for 34 minutes. Afforded more than a half-hour to make adjustments, quarterback Colin Kaepernick (16 of 28, 301 yards, 1 TD) and the 49ers went on a 17-0 run, cutting Baltimore’s lead down to 28-23. After Justin Tucker’s field goal early in the fourth quarter put Baltimore up 31-23, Kaepernick capped a 76-yard drive with a 15-yard touchdown run. San Francisco unsuccessfully attempted a two-point conversion with a passing play to receiver Randy Moss (Kaepernick’s throw went over Moss’ head), allowing the Ravens to keep a 31-29 edge.
The 49ers did have a chance—from the Ravens’ 5-yard line—to go ahead with less than two minutes left to play, but turned the ball over on downs after Kaepernick’s fourth-down pass to Michael Crabtree sailed over Crabtree and his two Ravens defenders. Baltimore would hold on to defeat San Francisco 34-31, winning its second Super Bowl in franchise history.
It was a thrilling finish to the 2012-13 NFL season, one that may have eluded us were it not for that power outage in the third quarter. Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco, who threw three touchdowns and completed 22 of 33 pass attempts overall for 287 yards, was named Super Bowl MVP.
Superdome power outage note: Beyonce’s Super Bowl XLVII Halftime Show rehearsals caused, according to various reports, two blackouts at the venue.
