LARAMIE -- Alabama has had 450 players selected in the NFL Draft since the league began that practice back in 1936.

Seventy-nine of those guys have gone in the first round.

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Guess how many have scored a point in a Super Bowl? Zero.

That list above includes names like Joe Namath, Ken Stabler, John Hannah, Ozzie Newsome, Dwight Stephenson and Derrick Thomas. Every single one of those players has since been elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Bart Starr has won a Super Bowl. So has Wilbur Jackson, Roman Harper, Dont'a Hightower and OJ Howard, among many others. None have crossed the white stripe.

The Crimson Tide won't be rolling into the end zone next Sunday, either. Neither the Chiefs or 49ers have a single player on their respective active rosters from 'Bama.

The same can't be said for the University of Wyoming.

A former Cowboy has scored a touchdown in five different Super Bowls, tallying 30 points. That number could increase in Las Vegas with San Francisco safety Tashaun Gipson in the starting lineup.

In fact, UW has more points in the big game than any other Mountain West program, past or present. Let's take a look at those performances:

 

SUPER BOWL III - Jerry Hill - Running Back - Baltimore Colts

The Lingle, Wyoming product plunged into the end zone from a yard out in the fourth quarter to put the Colts on the board, but it wouldn't be enough as Namath and the New York Jets claimed Super Bowl III inside Miami's Orange Bowl, 16-17. Hill finished with nine carries for 29 yards and caught two passes out of the backfield. Hill played at Wyoming from 1958-60, capping his collegiate career with 1,374 rushing yards on 288 attempts. He was selected in the third round of the 1961 NFL Draft by the Colts. Hill won a Super Bowl title in Baltimore two years later with a 16-13 victory over Dallas.

 

SUPER BOWL VII - Jim Kiick - Running Back - Miami Dolphins

Kiick became the second Cowboy running back to score a touchdown in the big game. The New Jersey native also barreled his way into the end zone from a yard out. That came in the second quarter of a 14-7 victory over the Washington Redskins inside the Los Angeles Coliseum. Kiick rushed for 38 yards on 12 attempts and snagged two passes in the win. From 1965-67, Kiick was a fixture in Wyoming's backfield, rushing for 1,714 yards and 10 touchdowns on 431 career carries. He also caught 52 passes for 561 yards and five more scores during one of the most successful eras of UW football.

 

SUPER BOWL VIII - Jim Kiick - Running Back - Miami Dolphins

Miami extended its first-quarter lead over the Minnesota Vikings when Kiick, for the second consecutive Super Bowl, scored from a yard out. The Dolphins would go on to hoist the Lombardi Trophy once again after the 24-7 rout inside Houston's Rice Stadium. Kiick carried the ball seven times for just 10 yards in the victory.

 

SUPER BOWL XXVII - Jay Novacek - Tight End - Dallas Cowboys

The upstart Buffalo Bills scored first in Super Bowl XXVII. Dallas found the end zone eight times, though, beginning with a 23-yard pitch and catch from Troy Aikman to Novacek in the first quarter. The former Wyoming standout was targeted 10 times that day inside the Rose Bowl. He hauled in seven catches for 72 yards in the 52-17 rout. A former First Team All-American at Wyoming, Novacek caught 83 passes for 1,536 yards and 10 touchdowns from 1982-84. Novacek, a Nebraska native, was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2008.

 

SUPER BOWL XXX - Jay Novacek - Tight End - Dallas Cowboys

Novacek again scored the Cowboys first touchdown in Super Bowl XXX, snagging a three-yard throw off the right arm of Aikman. He would finish with five grabs for 50 yards in a 27-17victory over the Steelers inside Sun Devil Stadium. For the third time in four seasons, Novacek was a Super Bowl champion.

University of Wyoming’s Top 50 Football Players

During the summer of 2021, 7220Sports.com counted down the Top 50 football players in University of Wyoming history, presented by Premier Bone & Joint Centers, Worthy of Wyoming.

The rules are simple: What was the player's impact while in Laramie? That means NFL stats, draft status or any other accolade earned outside of UW is irrelevant when it comes to this list.

This isn't a one-man job. This task called for a panel of experts. Joining 7220's Cody Tucker are Robert GagliardiJared NewlandRyan Thorburn, and Kevin McKinney.

We all compiled our own list of 50 and let computer averages do the work. Think BCS -- only we hope this catalog is fairer.

Don't agree with a selection? Feel free to sound off on our Twitter: @7220sports - #Top50UWFB

Gallery Credit: 7220Sports.com

- University of Wyoming’s Top 50 Football Players

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