Super Bowl Summaries

Super Bowl VIII
Miami 24, Minnesota 7
MVP: RB Larry Csonka, Miami

January 13, 1974
Houston, Texas; Rice Stadium
Attendance: 71,882

Super Bowl VIII
Photograph by: Walter Iooss Jr.
Csonka was magnificent, rushing for 145 yards on 33 carries.

After building a 17-0 lead, the Dolphins forced a Minnesota fumble on a fourth-and-one play at the Miami 6-yard-line at the end of the first half. That basically sounded the death knell for the Vikings. Csonka was magnificent, rushing for 145 yards on 33 carries as Miami devoured the Purple People Eaters. The Miami rushing game was so dominant that Dolphins quarterback Bob Griese threw only seven passes, completing six. As Minnesota quarterback Fran Tarkenton said after the game, Miami "played as nearly perfect a game as a team can play."

Super Bowl VIII Drive Charts and Play-by-Play

Miami won the coin toss and elected to receive.

First Quarter
Miami (15:00) Cox kick to MD 7, Scott return (T. Brown).
MD 38	1–10	Morris 4 run around right end (Eller).
MD 42	2–6	Csonka 2 run right (Winston, Larsen).
MD 44	3–4	Griese 13 pass to Mandich (Bryant).
MV 43	1–10	Morris run off right tackle, no gain (Page).
MV 43	2–10	Csonka 16 run left (Krause).
MV 27	1–10	Griese 6 pass to Briscoe right flat (J. Wright).
MV 21	2–4	Csonka 5 run middle (Page).
MV 16	1–10	Csonka 8 run off right tackle (Eller).
MV 8	2–2	Morris 3 run left (Siemon).
MV 5	1–goal	Csonka 5 run right, touchdown (9:33). Yepremian kicked extra point.
	Miami scoring drive: 62 yards, 10 plays, 5:27. Miami 7, Minnesota 0
Minnesota (9:33) Yepremian kick to MV 1, West 13 return (Bannon).
MV 14	1–10	Foreman 5 run off left tackle (Den Herder).
MV 19	2–5	Foreman run left, no gain (Fernandez, Kolen).
MV 19	3–5	Tarkenton 4 swing pass to Foreman (Fernandez).
MV 23	4–1	Eischeid 34 punt, Scott 1 return, recovered own fumble (Porter).
Miami (7:08)
MD 44	1–10	Morris 5 run left (Krause).
MD 49	2–5	Griese 8 pass to Mandich right flat (Winston).
MV 43	1–10	Morris 4 run off right tackle (Siemon, Winston).
MV 39	2–6	Csonka 8 run off right tackle (Marshall).
MV 31	1–10	Kiick run, loss of 3 (Page).
MV 34	2–13	Csonka 12 run right end (N. Wright, Krause).
MV 22	3–1	Csonka 8 run right (Krause).
MV 14	1–10	Griese 13 pass to Briscoe (J. Wright).
MV 1	1–goal	Kiick run off right tackle, no gain (Winston).
MV 1	2–goal	Kiick 1 run middle, touchdown (1:22). Yepremian kicked extra point.
	Miami scoring drive: 56 yards, 10 plays, 5:46. Miami 14, Minnesota 0
Minnesota (1:22) Yepremian kick to MV 6, West 15 return (Newman). Minnesota penalized 10 for holding (Gilliam).
MV 11	1–10	Tarkenton 5 pass to Foreman (Kolen, Anderson).
MV 16	2–5	Reed 2 run left (Fernandez).
MV 18	3–3	Tarkenton 9 pass to Kingsriter (Anderson).
	END OF FIRST QUARTER: Miami 14, Minnesota 0
Second Quarter
MV 27	1–10	Foreman 5 run off right tackle (Matheson).
MV 32	2–5	Reed 4 run middle (Fernandez).
MV 36	3–1	Reed run off right tackle, no gain (Buoniconti).
MV 36	4–1	Eischeid 42 punt, Scott 7 return (Tingelhoff).
Miami (13:03)
MD 29	1–10	Morris 14 run around right end (J. Wright).
MD 43	1–10	Csonka 2 run left end (Hilgenberg).
MD 45	2–8	Griese sacked, loss of 10 (Page).
MD 35	3–18	Griese pass to Briscoe deep incomplete.
MD 35	4–18	Seiple 38 punt, Bryant fair catch.
Minnesota (11:31)
MV 27	1–10	Foreman 3 run right end (Anderson, Foley).
MV 30	2–7	Tarkenton sacked, loss of 10 (Den Herder).
MV 20	3–17	Tarkenton pass to Kingsriter incomplete.
MV 20	4–17	Eischeid 45 punt, Scott fair catch.
Miami (10:03)
MD 35	1–10	Csonka 1 run right. Minnesota penalized 15 for unsportsmanlike conduct (Hilgenberg).
MV 49	1–10	Griese 6 pass to Warfield left flat (Bryant).
MV 43	2–4	Csonka 3 run off right tackle (Siemon).
MV 40	3–1	Morris 10 run right (Krause).
MV 30	1–10	Csonka 9 run right end (Krause, Marshall).
MV 21	2–1	Csonka run left, no gain (Siemon).
MV 21	3–1	Csonka run middle, no gain (Eller).
MV 21	4–1	Yepremian, 28–yard field goal (6:02).
	Miami scoring drive: 44 yards, 7 plays, 4:01. Miami 17, Minnesota 0
Minnesota (6:02) Yepremian kick out of end zone, touchback.
MV 20	1–10	Foreman 2 run right (Swift, Buoniconti).
MV 22	2–8	Tarkenton pass to Foreman middle incomplete.
MV 22	3–8	Tarkenton 17 pass to Voigt (Kolen).
MV 39	1–10	Tarkenton pass to Reed left flat incomplete.
MV 39	2–10	Foreman 1 run right end (Den Herder).
MV 40	3–9	Tarkenton 14 pass to Voigt middle (Buoniconti).
MD 46	1–10	Tarkenton 3 pass to Gilliam left flat (Kolen).
MD 43	2–7	Tarkenton recovered fumbled snap, loss of 2. Two–Minute Warning.
MD 45	3–9	Tarkenton 30 pass to Gilliam deep (Johnson).
MD 15	1–10	Tarkenton 8 rollout run right (Buoniconti).
MD 7	2–2	Reed run right, loss of 1 (Matheson).
MD 8	3–3	Reed 2 run middle (Stanfill).
MD 6	4–1	Reed run off right tackle (Buoniconti), fumbled, Scott recovered for Miami at MD 6.
Miami (:30)
MD 6	1–10	Csonka run middle, no gain (Larsen).
MD 6	2–10	Csonka run middle, loss of 1 (Larsen).
	END OF SECOND QUARTER: Miami 17, Minnesota 0
Third Quarter
Minnesota (15:00) Yepremian kick to MV 1, Gilliam 65 return. Minnesota penalized 10 from spot of foul (MV 21) for holding. Gilliam credited with 20 return.
MV 11	1–10	Foreman 2 run right end (Foley).
MV 13	2–8	Tarkenton pass to Foreman, no gain (Kolen).
MV 13	3–8	Tarkenton sacked, loss of 6 (Fernandez).
MV 7	4–14	Eischeid 48 punt, Scott 12 return (Kingsriter).
Miami (12:42)
MV 43	1–10	Morris 1 run left (Siemon).
MV 42	2–9	Csonka 4 reverse (Siemon).
MV 38	3–5	Griese 27 pass to Warfield deep left (Bryant).
MV 11	1–10	Csonka 4 run right tackle (Eller).
MV 7	2–6	Griese 2 run evading pass rush (Winston).
MV 5	3–4	Morris run left, loss of 8. Minnesota penalized 5 for holding (Hilgenberg). Automatic first down.
MV 8	1–goal	Csonka 6 run left tackle (Bryant).
MV 2	2–goal	Csonka 2 run right, touchdown (8:44). Yepremian kicked extra point.
	Miami scoring drive: 43 yards, 8 plays, 3:58. Miami 24, Minnesota 0
Minnesota (8:44) Yepremian kick to MV 5, Gilliam 21 return (Matheson).
MV 26	1–10	Tarkenton 5 run evading pass rush (Matheson).
MV 31	2–5	Tarkenton 10 swing pass to Foreman.
MV 41	1–10	Reed 6 draw middle (Foley).
MV 47	2–4	Tarkenton screen to Reed, loss of 1 (Foley).
MV 46	3–5	Reed 1 run left (Matheson).
MV 47	4–4	Eischeid 42 punt downed at MD 11.
Miami (5:03)
MD 11	1–10	Morris 3 run right (Eller).
MD 14	2–7	Csonka 13 run middle (Hilgenberg).
MD 27	1–10	Csonka run middle, loss of 2 (Marshall).
MD 25	2–12	Csonka 5 run right (Siemon).
MD 30	3–7	Csonka 3 run right (Larsen).
MD 33	4–4	Seiple 24 punt downed at MV 43.
Minnesota (1:34)
MV 43	1–10	Tarkenton 8 pass to Foreman middle (Matheson).
MD 49	2–2	Marinaro 3 run right end (Fernandez).
MD 46	1–10	Tarkenton pass to Foreman broken up (Buoniconti), incomplete.
MD 46	2–10	Tarkenton 2 pass to Gilliam (Foley).
	END OF THIRD QUARTER: Miami 24, Minnesota 0
Fourth Quarter
MD 44	3–8	Tarkenton 15 pass to Voigt.
MD 29	1–10	Tarkenton 9 pass to Gilliam (Foley).
MD 20	2–1	Tarkenton pass to Lash incomplete.
MD 20	3–1	Reed 7 run right end (Scott).
MD 13	1–10	Tarkenton 9 pass to Lash (Johnson).
MD 4	2–1	Tarkenton 4 keeper right end, touchdown (13:25). Cox kicked extra point.
	Minnesota scoring drive: 57 yards, 10 plays, 3:09. Miami 24, Minnesota 7
Miami (13:25) Cox onside kick touched by Matheson, recovered by T. Brown for Minnesota. Play nullified and Minnesota penalized 5 for offsides (Porter). Cox kick to MD 18. Scott 16 return (Sutherland).
MD 34	1–10	Csonka 3 run right tackle (Eller).
MD 37	2–7	Morris run right end, loss of 2 (Winston).
MD 35	3–9	Griese 5 run evading pass rush (Hilgenberg).
MD 40	4–4	Seiple 57 punt downed at MV 3.
Minnesota (10:47)
MV 3	1–10	Tarkenton 12 pass to Marinaro (Scott).
MV 15	1–10	Tarkenton pass to Lash incomplete.
MV 15	2–10	Reed 9 draw middle (Swift).
MV 24	3–1	Reed 2 run right tackle (Buoniconti).
MV 26	1–10	Tarkenton pass to Reed incomplete (Swift).
MV 26	2–10	Tarkenton 9 pass to B. Brown (Swift).
MV 35	3–1	B. Brown 2 run left tackle (Stanfill).
MV 37	1–10	Tarkenton pass to Marinaro incomplete. Play nullified and Miami penalized 4 for pass interference (Foley). Automatic first down.
MV 41	1–10	Tarkenton 27 swing pass to Marinaro (Scott).
MD 32	1–10	Tarkenton pass to Lash end zone incomplete.
MD 32	2–10	Tarkenton pass to Voigt middle incomplete.
MD 32	3–10	Tarkenton pass to Lash deep intercepted at goal line, Johnson 10 return (Gilliam).
Miami (6:24)
MD 10	1–10	Csonka 7 run middle (Marshall).
MD 17	2–3	Csonka 5 run left tackle (Hilgenberg).
MD 22	1–10	Kiick 1 run off left tackle (Hilgenberg).
MD 23	2–9	Csonka 1 run off right tackle (Eller).
MD 24	3–8	Csonka 2 run middle. Minnesota penalized 15 for personal foul (Page).
MD 41	1–10	Csonka 4 run middle (Marshall).
MD 45	2–6	Kiick 5 run right tackle. Personal fouls against Miami (Kuchenberg) and Minnesota (Page) offset.
50	3–1	Minn. penalized 5 for offsides.
MV 45	1–10	Kiick 1 run left (Larsen).
MV 44	2–9	Csonka 6 run (Hilgenberg). Two–Minute Warning.
MV 38	3–3	Csonka 2 run right (Marshall).
MV 36	4–1	Csonka 2 run middle (Hilgenberg).
MV 34	1–10	Kiick 5 run right tackle (Eller).
	FINAL SCORE: Miami 24, Minnesota 7
	FINAL RECORDS: Miami 15–2, Minnesota 14–3

Super Bowl VIII Boxscore

                           SCORING
Minnesota                                   0  0  0  7 --  7
Miami                                      14  3  7  0 -- 24

MIA- Csonka 5 run  (Yepremian kick),  5:27 1st
MIA- Kiick 1 run  (Yepremian kick), 13:38 1st

MIA- FG Yepremian 28,  8:58 2nd

MIA- Csonka 2 run  (Yepremian kick),  6:16 3rd

MIN- Tarkenton 4 run  (Cox kick),  1:35 4th


TEAM STATISTICS                          Minn.          Miami
Total First Downs                          14             21
  Rushing                                   5             13
  Passing                                   8              4
  Penalty                                   1              4
Total Net Yardage                         238            259
Total Offensive Plays                      54             61
  Average Gain per Offensive Play           4.4            4.2
Rushes                                     24             53
  Yards Gained Rushing (Net)               72            196
  Average Yards per Rush                    3.0            3.7
Passes Attempted                           28              7
  Passes Completed                         18              6
  Had Intercepted                           1              0
  Tackled Attempting to Pass                2              1
  Yards Lost Attempting to Pass            16             10
  Yards Gained Passing (Net)              166             63
Punts                                       5              3
  Average Distance                         42.2           39.7
Punt Returns                                0              3
  Punt Return Yardage                       0             20
Kickoff Returns                             4              2
  Kickoff Return Yardage                   69             47
Interception Return Yardage                 0             10
Fumbles                                     2              1
  Own Fumbles Recovered                     1              1
  Opponent Fumbles Recovered                0              1
Penalties                                   7              1
  Yards Penalized                          65              4
Total Points Scored                         7             24
Touchdowns                                  1              3
  Rushing                                   1              3
  Passing                                   0              0
  Returns                                   0              0
Extra Points                                1              3
Field Goals                                 0              1
  Field Goals Attempted                     0              1
Safeties                                    0              0
Third-Down Efficiency                    8/15           4/11
Fourth-Down Efficiency                    0/1            1/1
Time of Possession                      26:15          33:45

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
Rushing
Minnesota                         No.      Yds.     LG    TD
Reed                              11        32       9     0
Foreman                            7        18       5     0
Tarkenton                          4        17       8     1
Marinaro                           1         3       3     0
B. Brown                           1         2       2     0
Miami                             No.      Yds.     LG    TD
Csonka                            33       145      16     2
Morris                            11        34      14     0
Kiick                              7        10       5     1
Griese                             2         7       5     0

Passing
Minnesota                    Att.   Comp.    Yds.   TD   Int.
Tarkenton                     28      18     182     0     1
Miami                        Att.   Comp.    Yds.   TD   Int.
Griese                         7       6      73     0     0

Receiving
Minnesota                         No.      Yds.     LG    TD
Foreman                            5        27      10     0
Gilliam                            4        44      30     0
Voigt                              3        46      17     0
Marinaro                           2        39      27     0
B. Brown                           1         9       9     0
Kingsriter                         1         9       9     0
Lash                               1         9       9     0
Reed                               1        -1       1     0
Miami                             No.      Yds.     LG    TD
Warfield                           2        33      27     0
Mandich                            2        21      13     0
Briscoe                            2        19      13     0

Interceptions
Minnesota                         No.      Yds.     LG    TD
None                              --        --      --    --
Miami                             No.      Yds.     LG    TD
Johnson                            1        10      10     0

Punting
Minnesota                         No.      Avg.     LG   Blk.
Eischeid                           5        42.2    48     0
Miami                             No.      Avg.     LG   Blk.
Seiple                             3        39.7    57     0

Punt Returns
Minnesota                        No.   FC     Yds.   LG   TD
Bryant                            0     1       0    **    0
Miami                            No.   FC     Yds.   LG   TD
Scott                             3     1      20    12    0

Kickoff Returns
Minnesota                         No.      Yds.     LG    TD
Gilliam                            2        41      21     0
West                               2        28      15     0
Miami                             No.      Yds.     LG    TD
Scott                              2        47      31     0


   Minnesota Vikings           Miami Dolphins     
  
                   ==  Offense  ==                     
Tingelhoff, Mick        C    Langer, Jim             C 
Gallagher, Frank        G    Kuechenberg, Bob        G 
White, Ed               G    Little, Larry           G 
Alderman, Grady         T    Evans, Norm             T 
Yary, Ron               T    Moore, Wayne            T 
Voigt, Stu              TE   Mandich, Jim            TE
Dale, Carroll           WR   Briscoe, Marlin         WR
Gilliam, John           WR   Warfield, Paul          WR
Foreman, Chuck          RB   Csonka, Larry           RB
Reed, Oscar             RB   Morris, Mercury         RB
Tarkenton, Fran         QB   Griese, Bob             QB

                   ==  Defense  ==                      
Larsen, Gary            DT   Fernandez, Manny        DT 
Page, Alan              DT   Heinz, Bob              DT 
Eller, Carl             DE   Den Herder, Vern        DE 
Marshall, Jim           DE   Stanfill, Bill          DE 
Hilgenberg, Wally       OLB  Kolen, Mike             OLB
Winston, Roy            OLB  Swift, Douglas          OLB
Siemon, Jeff            MLB  Buoniconti, Nick        MLB
Bryant, Bobby           CB   Johnson, Curtis         CB 
Wright, Nate            CB   Mumphord, Lloyd         CB 
Krause, Paul            FS   Scott, Jake             FS 
Wright, Jeff            SS   Anderson, Dick          SS 

                  ==  Substitute  ==                    
Brown, Terry                 Babb, Charlie              
Brown, Bill                  Ball, Larry                
Cox, Fred                    Bannon, Bruce              
Eischeid, Mike               Crusan, Doug               
Goodrum, Charlie             Fleming, Marv              
Kingsriter, Doug             Foley, Tim                 
Lash, Jim                    Goode, Irv                 
Lurtsema, Bob                Kiick, Jim                 
Marinaro, Ed                 Matheson, Bob              
Martin, Amos                 Moore, Maulty              
Osborn, Dave                 Morrall, Earl              
Porter, Ron                  Newman, Ed                 
Sutherland, Doug             Nottingham, Don            
West, Charlie                Seiple, Larry
                             Stuckey, Henry
                             Twilley, Howard
                             Yepremian, Garo            

                  ==  Did Not Play  ==                   
Ballman, Gary                 Sellers, Ron               
Berry, Bob                 
Lawson, Steve              
Zaunbrecher, Godfrey

Super Bowl VIII Recap

The Dolphins made it two Super Bowl wins in a row in their third straight Super Bowl appearance.

MIAMI MARCHED 62 AND 56 YARDS for scores in the first 15 minutes. Larry Csonka, the game's most valuable player, scored on a five-yard run and Jim Kiick blasted over from a yard out.

Trailing 17-0 near the end of the half, Minnesota faced a fourth-and-one from Miami's 6. Electing to go for the first down, Minnesota came up short when running back Oscar Reed fumbled.

Minnesota got on the board when trailing 24-0 early in the fourth quarter on a four-yard run by Fran Tarkenton. Csonka gained 145 yards on 33 carries and Bob Griese threw only seven passes in the game, completing six for 73 yards.

Super Bowl VIII Photos

Miami Dolphins coach Don Shula looks to the field and is ready to lead his team into action against the Minnesota Vikings during Superbowl VIII at Rice stadium on Jaunary 13, 1974 in Houston, Texas.

(Photo by Getty Images)

Miami head coach Don Shula watched his Dolphins totally dominate the game in their 24-7 win over the Minnesota Vikings in Super Bowl VIII on January 13, 1974 at Rice Stadium in Houston, TX.

(Photo by Rod Hanna/NFL)

Minnesota Vikings Hall of Fame quarterback Fran Tarkenton (10) throws a pass as Dolphins defensive tackle Manny Fernandez (75) moves in during the Vikings 24-7 loss to the Miami Dolphins in Super Bowl VIII on January 13, 1974 at Rice Stadium in Houston, Texas.

(Photo by NFL)

Minnesota Vikings Hall of Fame quarterback Fran Tarkenton (10) scrambles out of the pocket while trying to find an open receiver during the Vikings 24-7 loss to the Miami Dolphins in Super Bowl VIII on January 13, 1974 at Rice Stadium in Houston, Texas.

(Photo by NFL)

Miami Dolphins Hall of Fame fullback Larry Csonka dives in for a touchdown in the 3rd quarter of a 24-7 win over the Minnesota Vikings in Super Bowl VIII on January 13, 1974 at Rice Stadium in Houston, Texas. Csonka won MVP for the game with 145-yards on 33 carries.

(Photo by NFL)

Miami Dolphins RB Larry Csonka (39).

(Associated Press Photo)

Minnesota Vikings defensive end Jim Marshall (70) tackles Miami Dolphins running back Larry Csonka (39).

(Associated Press Photo)

Miami Dolphins safety Jake Scott on a kick return in a 24-7 win over the Minnesota Vikings in Super Bowl VIII on January 13, 1974 at Rice Stadium in Houston, Texas.

(Photo by NFL)

Super Bowl Index:

Super Bowl VIII Miami 24, Minnesota 7 MVP: RB Larry Csonka, Miami

Super Bowl VIII Drive Charts and Play-by-Play

Super Bowl VIII Boxscore

Super Bowl VIII Recap

Super Bowl VIII Photos

Super Bowl VIII
Miami 24, Minnesota 7
MVP: RB Larry Csonka, Miami