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AROUND THE SHIELD — The Detroit Lions had one foot in the franchise's first Super Bowl since the NFL/AFL merger with a 24-7 halftime lead.
But San Francisco put the shoe on the other foot.
Former BYU linebacker Fred Warner had a game-high 13 tackles, a tackle for loss and a pass defended as the 49ers rallied from a 17-point first half deficit with a 34-31 win Sunday night at Levi's Stadium in the Bay Area.
The Lions (14-6) were flying, reporting former Desert Hills offensive tackle Penei Sewell as an eligible receiver three times in the second quarter and piling up 24 points in the first half on the road.
But games aren't played in just one half, and the Niners had an answer.
Jake Moody gave the 49ers their first lead of the game with a 33-yard field goal, and Elijah Mitchell capped a 27-0 run with a 3-yard touchdown as San Francisco advanced to the Super Bowl for the first time since 2019.
The Bay Area squad will face the epitome of consistency in the first Super Bowl hosted by the Las Vegas Raiders in Sin City.
For the fourth time in five years, former BYU offensive lineman Andy Reid has the Kansas City Chiefs in the Super Bowl.
"It's tough to do back-to-back-to-back seasons," said Reid, whose team won back-to-back road games in the AFC playoffs for the first time in his tenure. "You play a lot of football games, and you've got to work through that mentally. It's not an easy thing. I'm so happy for the guys, and how they handled that. When it came time to put the hammer down, they put the hammer down. … The best part is, we're not done. We've got another game."
Here's a look at how other former Utah college and high school football standouts performed on the NFL's championship weekend.
While he's brought along star quarterback Patrick Mahomes and tight end Travis Kelce again, this time the former offensive graduate assistant under legendary college football coach LaVell Edwards also has a secret weapon: the Swifties.
Kelce's significantly more famous girlfriend and pop superstar Taylor Swift was on the field Sunday with Kelce's mother, Donna, and the super couple shared a kiss after Kelce's 116-yard game that included a 19-yard touchdown in the first quarter that gave the Chiefs (12-6) a lead they would never relinquish en route to a 17-10 win.
Reid's got plenty of celebrities in his corner, as well. After the game, eight-time Pro Bowler and two-time Super Bowl champion Deion Sanders — the current head coach at Colorado — congratulated his "friend," whom he called "COACH-HIM" in a post on X, formerly Twitter.
"Andy Reid is the man," Sanders said in a post. "I love him as a man, a coach and a friend. He is 'COACH-HIM'!"
But with all due respect to Ms. Swift, who is scheduled to perform in Japan a day before the Super Bowl in Las Vegas, Sunday's victory was a celebration of the most dominant coach-quarterback duo in the NFL since Tom Brady and Belichick were at their height, with playoff appearances in all but one season since Reid took over in Kansas City in 2013, said Chiefs CEO Clark Hunt.
"After we meet in the locker room after a tough game, some guys have their heads down. Andy's never one of those guys," he said. "He's always looking forward to the next week. He's looking forward to the next opportunity. He doesn't believe that whatever problems we had in that game are going to carry over to the next, and he's very positive in that regard."
AFC Championship
A closer look at the sequence that resulted in only a Kyle Van Noy penalty pic.twitter.com/tOruE85F46
— Kevin Oestreicher (@koestreicher34) January 28, 2024
No. 3 Kansas City 17, No. 1 Baltimore 10
Chiefs (12-6)
- No locals on the active roster.
Ravens (13-5)
- Tyler Huntley, QB, Utah: Active, but did not play.
- Marcus Williams, S, Utah: Starting safety had three tackles and a pass defended.
- Kyle Van Noy, LB, BYU: Starting linebacker posted three tackles, a tackle for loss, and a quarterback hit.
NFC Championship
Fred Warner is wearing custom "Red October" Nike Air Yeezy 2 cleats in the @49ers NFC Championship Game 🔴 pic.twitter.com/slKzH0Ro1E
— Nice Kicks (@nicekicks) January 29, 2024
No. 1 San Francisco 34, No. 3 Detroit 31
49ers (13-5)
- Fred Warner, LB, BYU: Starting linebacker totaled a game-high 13 tackles, a tackle for loss and a pass defended.
- Mitch Wishnowsky, P, Utah: Punted once for 56 yards, with a 10-yard return.
Lions (14-6)
- Penei Sewell, OT, Desert Hills (via Oregon): Started at right tackle.
